X3
by Quing
Summary: The X-men have a new recruit. And is Jean really dead? And stuff like that.
1. part 1

* * *

Disclaimer: The X-men do not belong to me.

* * *

The museum was dark, save for the occasional red line of the laser security detection system that was protecting the pieces, and the flashlight of the guard who did his rounds on the hour. As the guard sat at his station, watching television and eating a sandwich, a figure slipped by, barely rustling behind the man. As "The Simpsons" blared on the screen, the dark stranger padded gently on, before stopping in front of a painting and pulling out a knife.

"Too easy." He cut the painting out from its frame and moved on to it's neighbor, which was guarded by a laser system. Pulling out a small kit, he quickly disabled the system and sliced the painting free.

Over in the guard's station, a light began to blink. The guard turned and fumbled for the phone.

"Yes, Police? Someone has just tripped the security system on one of the paintings here at the Art Museum."

The dark man had just finished placing the rolled up canvasses into a long, slender tube he had hidden in his coat. He heard a clattering noise behind him, as the upper window of the museum clanged shut. Someone else had been there. He heard the sirens approaching and knew immediately that he had been set up.

"Merde!" He closed the canister and headed towards the open window, climbing up only to find a yellow rose sitting on the outside ledge, the window itself sealed shut.

"Assasins..." He jumped back to the ground and moved towards the front stairs. He leapt over the balcony and landed gently on the marble floor below, only to be confronted with two armed police officers, guns drawn. He reached into his coat pocket without thinking and hurled two charged playing cards at the officers. The cards exploded, sending the police officers sprawling onto their backs.

"Desole, Mes Amis." He tipped an imaginary hat and turned the corner, smiling. When he realized that he was now facing ten armed officers, his smile faded.

"Merde..."

* * *

The room shuddered and the tiles shrunk, replaced by a pink glow. The machine came to life. 

"Active mutant signature located."

As the information streamed through the helmet, Xavier concentrated on the mutant in question. It seemed as if he had gotten himself into trouble. Cerebro shut itself down, and he sent a message to his X-men.

"Cyclops, Wolverine, and Rogue. Assemble in the war room. You're going to New Orleans."

* * *

"So Scott, you ever gonna teach me how t' fly?" 

"I don't know, you don't really come across as the flying type...Maybe some day."

Rogue was sitting in the co-pilot's seat, with her feet up on the control panel. Wolverine was in the back, smoking a cigar.

"Logan, you gonna put that out? It smells like someone up and died in here."

"No." Even though he said no, he grudgingly extinguished the cigar and leaned back in his chair. Cyclops laughed. He knew that if he had asked about it, Logan would have most likely given him the middle, er, claw. He guided the jet down, landing it gracefully on the still waters of the bayou. After powering down, he turned to his teammates.

"Ok. Let's go over this again. I'm going to go in and pay the guy's bail. You two will be..."

"Stealing the jet and leaving you here to die." Logan received a smack on the back of the head from Rogue.

"We'll be waitin' for you in th' bar down th' street. When you and the boy get there, we will try to talk him into joining us. We have an active comm. Link open in case something goes wrong."

"Right. But it shouldn't. This is just a routine mission. Ok, I'll se you in a few."

The top of the jet slid open and they climbed out, heading in two different directions.

* * *

The man sat in the dingy cell, tossing playing cards lazily onto the center of the cot across the cell. 

"Dis is great. A simple job and Remy gets ratted out by de assassins. Wait until dis gets out. Dey gonna have a field day wit dis."

He stopped tossing the cards as the guard approached his cell.

"LeBeau, you've made bail. You're free to go."

"Who paid it? Jean-Luc?"

"Some guy name Summers."

"Remy don' know any Summers."

The guard slid the barred door open.

"If you know him or not, I suggest you thank him."

Remy collected his cards and tucked them into his pocket.

"Oui. Remy be sure to do dat."

He walked out to the lobby, where a man wearing a leather jumpsuit and strange glasses stood.

"You be dis Summers?"

The strange man offered his hand.

"Scott. Nice to meet you."

Remy eyed him and then accepted the handshake.

"Nice glasses you got dere, mon ami."

Scott hated it when people pointed out that he had to wear the visor.

"Thanks. If you'll come with me, there's something I'd like to talk to you about."

"Remy don' need t' find religion, if dat's what dis is all about."

"No, Mr. LeBeau, this is not anything like that. My friends and I would just like to ask you a few questions. We have an opportunity available to you that you may be interested in."

Remy didn't like to make a habit of going places with strange men in leather, but he figured that since the guy did bail him out, he owed him at least that.

"Ok. But if t'ings get weird, Remy's not sticking around."

"That's fair."

* * *

"Here you are, handsome." The waitress placed the beer down on the table and gave Wolverine a wink. 

"Be sure to call if you need anything."

He looked down at the paper coaster that the beer was on. There, in red ink, was a phone number. Across the table, Rogue tried her best to stifle a laugh.

"I'll be sure to do that. Thanks."

The waitress walked away, looking back with a smile.

"Logan, you're such a ladies' man."

"Shut it."

She smiled. He had such a way with words. She lifted her icewater to her lips, and looked around the bar.

"Ya think Scott ran into some trouble?"

"He would have said something," Wolverine tapped his earpiece.

"Yeah... Logan, I gotta ask you a question."

"Shoot."

"D'you think that... What's your opinion on, uh, on Bobby? And me?"

"Kid, you don't want me to answer that one."

"Right... Well, its just—"

"Scott!" Logan waved his arm in the air to get the attention of his teammate. Scott was a little bit confused at first, it was not at all like Logan to make things easier. Usually, he would have sunk back into the booth and made Cyclops look like a moron as he searched the bar for him. But the Wolverine also hated opening up. Even to Rogue. Cyclops and the young man behind him made their way to the booth. Cyclops slid in next to Rogue, and the man took the seat next to Logan. Judging from his looks, he was about Rogue's age, a year older at the most. Logan sniffed the air, trying to get some idea of the guy's life.

"Remy LeBeau, codename Gambit, this is Wolverine." The two men nodded at each other, and Cyclops continued. "And this is Rogue."

Remy looked at the girl seated across the booth from Wolverine.

"Un Ange...", he muttered.

Wolverine and Scott didn't know any French, and so they disregarded the comment. Rogue, however, understood it and blushed, stuttering.

"It...it's nice t' meet you, Gambit."

"Non, chere... Call me Remy."

She looked up at him, noticing for the first time his eyes. They were startlingly beautiful. The whites of them were black, and the pupil and iris were red. She looked into his eyes until Wolverine cleared his throat and kicked her under the table. She jumped and cursed.

"Dammit, Logan! That hurt. You've got metal on your feet you sonofa—"

Cyclops interrupted her before she could finish.

"So, as I was saying, the Xavier institute will not only help you develop as a mutant, but also-and perhaps more importantly, as a member of the team. We operate as a school, through twelfth grade, and the graduates are offered the chance to stay on. Rogue graduated last year and has since become a full time member of the team and an assistant in the younger classes. Given your age, you would be offered a position as well. Your room and board is covered, and you will be given an allowance of spending money each month."

Cyclops hadn't noticed that Logan had mockingly fallen asleep at the table, that Rogue had finished her water and started on Logan's beer, or that Remy wasn't really paying attention to him but was instead watching Rogue and nodding occasionally.

"So, would you like to come with us to New York?"

It took Remy a minute before he realized that he had been asked a question.

"Uh, was dat again?"

"Are you coming with us?"

"Oh. Yeah, Remy'll go."

* * *

Alkali lake had been changed, in a matter of seconds, to Alkali sea. The dam burst and covered the entire valley with water. Wildlife had been destroyed, as well as the lives of the mutants who escaped on the jet. Their good friend, Jean Grey had sacrificed herself to save the rest of them, choosing to let the water swallow her whole. The water in the spot where she had died began to boil. Birds scattered as the water spat up at them, and the treetops poking out of the water began to shake.

* * *

A/N: Review, please!!! I'll get the next part up ASAP. 


	2. part 2

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the X-men.

* * *

The halls of the school were quieter than usual, due to the fact that classes had begun. In her usual room, Ororo Munroe taught history. Elsewhere, however, recent graduates and new additions to the team had begun teaching as well. Kurt Wagner had begun to teach a German language course at the school. Down the hall, Recent graduates Bobby Drake and Piotr Rasputin had taken over the math and Art classes, respectively. One level up, Jubilation Lee and Katherine Pryde were trying to control a room full of students whose teachers were out on a mission. 

"Sit down, Brian! This is not the time to practice jumping! Get down from there!" Jubilee was beyond frustrated. She pulled her hands out of her pockets and pointed up towards the student, who had leapt up on top of the tall television unit, just out of reach. Her concentration was broken, as Kitty slapped her hands down to her sides.

"Are you nuts?! It's just a kid."

"Yeah, but it's a kid that's pissing me off!"

"You're crazy. Brian! If you don't come down now, you'll be skipping dessert tonight."

The young boy groaned and leapt to the floor, taking his place at the table once again.

"See? It's just a matter of using persuasion."

"I still think that it could have been just as easily a matter of using pyrotechnics."

"You would."

They both laughed, and one of the students behind Kitty threw a pillow at her. Jubilee saw it coming and warned her.

"Incoming."

Kitty phased and the pillow passed right through her, hitting Jubilee instead.

"Kitty!"

"Haha... oops."

All of a sudden, almost all of the students jumped up and ran over to the window, pointing and shouting.

"It's the blackbird!"

"Woah!"

"I told you so."

"That's awesome!"

Kitty and Jubilee looked at each other.

"Well, look at it this way, Kitty. We don't have to do this again hopefully for awhile."

"Thank God... BRIAN!"

The boy had grabbed onto the curtain rod with his feet and was dangling upside-down looking out of the window. Startled by being noticed, he accidentally let go and fell face first into the crowd of students underneath him.

"AAAAGH!"

Kitty was one step ahead of him, though. She phased through the crowd and caught the boy, who looked up at her with a sheepish grin on his face.

"Thanks?"

"Never. Again."

"Yes Ma'am."

She put him down and turned around, the crowd parting to let her through.

"Lunchtime."

The students bolted for the door and soon Jubilee and Kitty were alone in the room. Jubilee picked up a pile of papers that had fallen onto the floor.

"That was fun."

"You said it."

The door opened and Piotr walked in, smiling as he saw the mess that the students had made.

"Katya?"

"Oh, hi Pete."

"Hey there, big guy."

"You two coming to lunch?"

"If you're going to be there, sexy, so will we."

Jubilee got a swift slap to the back of her head.

"Yeah, Pete. We're coming."

* * *

Scott powered down the Blackbird, leaning back in his seat.

"Welcome to Westchester, Mr. LeBeau."

Gambit didn't hear him, though. He was too busy being lost in his own world, staring at Rogue. Logan had watched him the entire trip, and was really starting to get mad. Rogue pushed the button in the cockpit, and the stairs slid open. She stood up and turned to Gambit.

"If you want, Ah'll show you to your room."

"Remy would like dat."

Wolverine interrupted.

"I'll do it."

"Logan, it's no big deal..."

"Not to you maybe." He grabbed Gambit's bag and headed towards the door.

"Remy'll see you later, non?"

Rogue blushed.

"Guess so."

* * *

The chamber slid closed with a whoosh. As she pulled on her gloves, she smiled. No matter how many times she saw her uniform there, displayed with the rest of the team's, she always felt proud. She kicked the drawer under her costume chamber closed. Turning, she found herself face to face with the largest, bluest, hariest man she had ever seen. 

"Ah!"

"My apologies, Rogue." He pushed a button on his watch and a holographic image covered his body, making him look like a "normal" person.

"Dr. McCoy! No, Ah'm sorry. I- you startled me, that's all."

"I understand that it must be odd encountering me down here instead of Dr. Grey."

"It's just... I didn't hear you coming up behind me."

"I see. Will you be joining the rest of the faculty for lunch? I'm headed up there myself."

"Yeah." She followed him out of the room and to the elevator. As they boarded, she turned to the large man and pointed to his watch.

"You can take off th' image inducer, Doc. Ah don't care if you're blue, and neither do the students."

He smiled as he pushed the button, and became the fuzzy teddy bear that most of the mansion's residents knew him as.

* * *

"So, Mr. LeBeau, you would most likely be working with the language students, teaching the French classes. You have already seen your room, and met a number of the faculty." 

The Professor was explaining to Remy exactly what his duties at the mansion would be. There was a knock on the door, and Xavier paused.

"Come in?"

Bobby entered the office, still eating a pizza crust.

"Ah, Mr. LeBeau, this is Robert Drake. He graduated from the school this past spring, and is now teaching the math courses. I must excuse myself, as there is another individual coming in today for an interview. Mr. Drake will be showing you around the facility and answering any questions you have."

Bobby offered his hand, and Remy accepted.

"Hello. Please, follow me."

They headed out of the office, and started the tour. Remy was only half paying attention, keeping his eye out instead for Rogue.

"And this is the dining area. We use this for the students at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The teachers can either eat in here or eat in one of the kitchens, or the faculty dining area. Actually, we can really eat wherever we want. It's kind of nice, really. Across the hall there is the south rec. room. It's bigger than the others, but it's usually the hardest to get time in. Up those stairs are the girl's dorms. The female students all live there, as well as three of the staff members, Jubilation Lee, Kitty Pryde, and Rogue. They're in charge of the girl's dorms."

He turned away from the stairs and faced Remy.

"That's about it for this floor. Any questions?"

"You said dat Rogue's room is right up dere?"

"Uh...yeah, that's right."

Unbeknownst to both of them, Rogue herself was headed down the stairs right then. She paused and ducked back into the shadows as she heard them talking.

"Good. Den it'll be easier for Remy to go visit her, non?"

Bobby was suspicious.

"Why would you need to visit her?"

"Haven't you ever seen de woman?! Remy just met her, and already, he t'inks he needs to know her better."

"Try it and I hurt you."

"Excuse me?"

"If you so much as look at my girlfriend the wrong way, you will regret it."

"Ah, de femme is your girlfriend? Remy had no idea."

"Well, now that you do, make sure that you stay away from her. Touch her, and you're dead."

In the stairwell, Rogue inhaled sharply. She hated the fact that Bobby was so jealous and overprotective. She hated even more that he chose those words, "Touch her..." Down below, Remy was grinning. He had heard her breathe; his senses were sharp. They had to be, given his profession. He knew that she hadn't appreciated Bobby's comments, that was one of the benefits of being a low-level empath.

"Maybe she don' need you telling people what to do. She's a big girl, she can make her own choices, non?"

For some reason, Remy didn't sense Rogue's mood lightening. Usually, he was able to get on the good sides of women by saying things like that.

"Maybe she doesn't know what she wants."

She couldn't take it anymore. She turned and ran back up the stairs, not caring about making noise. Both Bobby and Remy looked up as she ran to her room. As the door slammed shut, Bobby winced.

"Oui. Looks like you know just what to do, mon ami."

Bobby couldn't even think of anything to say. Instead, he accidentally iced up the railing. Remy snickered and hopped up the stairs, heading down the hall to the adult wing. He had figured out the general layout of the mansion very quickly, and was ready to start moving himself in. He paused at Rogue's door, listening to see if she was alright. He didn't hear any noise coming from within, so he walked back down the hall.

* * *

The water at Alkali lake was beyond boiling. Something was rising slowly, flames leaping above the water, casting a fiery glow across the surface.

* * *

Remy had extended his bow staff and was dancing down the hallway, as Ororo and Kurt turned the corner and followed him. Looking up from the lesson plans that she was preparing, Ororo recognized him. 

"Remy Etienne LeBeau, is that you?"

He froze mid-jig.

"Stormy!?"

He spun around, retracting his bo staff, a huge smile on his face.

"Don't call me that."

"STORMY!"

He ran up to the woman, throwing his arms around her and forcing her to drop the folder she was carrying.

"Remy? You're choking me, child."

"So sorry, Stormy."

Kurt, meanwhile, was standing there, utterly confused. Remy looked at him, not seeming to even notice that he was blue.

"Bonjour." He held out his hand. "De name's Remy. Stormy and me, we go way back. Used t' steal from de rich and give to de poor toget'er. Regular Robin Hood, Stormy was."

Kurt was shocked. Storm, a thief? Even stealing with good intentions, stealing was wrong.

"Oh, Kurt. Lighten up. This is Remy. Remy, this is Kurt Wagner."

Kurt tried to smile. She was right, he did need to lighten up. He had always been a joker back when he was in the circus, but after his encounter with Stryker, all that he had been able to retain of his former life were his religious convictions. He nodded at Remy and stooped to pick up the dropped papers. When he straightened himself up, Remy was gone.

"Was…?"

"He walks very lightly."

* * *

A/N: It took me a little bit longer to get this up than i thought I would... but it's done. I like reviews... so someone review. Preferably everyone. 


	3. part 3

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the X-men. Nor do I honestly see myself owning them anytime soon.

* * *

Remy had noticed Bobby Drake walking towards Rogue's room and quickly excused himself from the conversation he was having with Storm. He slunk along the hallway, trying to get as close as he could without being seen. 

"Rogue? It's me, Bobby... you wanna, um, go get some ice cream or something?"

Although her voice was muffled, Remy could still make it out.

"No. Go away."

"What? Why?"

"Ah don't want to talk to you."

"Rogue, if this is about what I said to LeBeau..." The bedroom door opened and Rogue came out, her makeup visibly smeared. She had been crying, but Remy could tell that it wasn't from being heartbroken, but rather from feeling betrayed. There was another emotion that he sensed, that told him that it wasn't the first time that she had been betrayed.

"Bobby, Ah said go away."

"Come here" Bobby extended his arms, offering a hug.

"What?! You think that you can talk shit and then just hug me and it'll all be alright? Bobby, you must not know me very well."

"Rogue, I..."

She sneered at him. "Touch me, and you're dead."

She stepped back into the room and slammed the door, locking it. Bobby stood outside for a few minutes, trying to think of what to say. Finally, he gave up and just walked away. Remy stepped out of the shadows and looked towards the bedroom. He smiled.

"He was bad for you anyway, chere."

* * *

The entire team assembled later that evening in Xavier's office, so that proper introductions could be made. Remy was seated directly next to the desk, and an attractive blonde woman was sitting next to him. He assumed that she was the other new teacher that Xavier had spoken of earlier, since none of the team seemed to know her. The rest of the group had scattered themselves around the room. Remy noticed that Rogue and Bobby were sitting across the room from each other, and that whenever Bobby tried to approach her, the two girls sitting with her blocked his way. As he surveyed the room, he found the rest of the room surveying him right back. Mostly, they were curious. Bobby was furious. He heard giggling, and looked over towards Rogue, where he saw her two friends, who he assumed were her roommates, looking at him. He winked at them, which sent them into another fit of laughter. The professor noticed the flirting and began the meeting. 

"Some of you have already met Mr. LeBeau, but for those of you who haven't, Remy LeBeau is from New Orleans. He will be joining the team and teaching French classes. Next to him is Carol Danvers. Most of you have met her on other occasions. She, too, will be joining the team full time, and she will be taking over some of Dr. Grey's classes. She will also be teaching a journalism course. Perhaps they can introduce themselves and their abilities better than I can. Remy?"

"T'anks, Professor. Well, my name is Remy LeBeau, but most people know me as Gambit. Erm, I'm a t'ief by professon, alt'ough it seems as if dat life may be on hold, after de recent events. When de chief dere found me, I was in de jail. Got set up by de assasins. But dat don' matter here. What else?" He turned to the Professor, shuffling a pack of cards in his hands. The professor nodded towards the cards and Remy held one up. "Oh, yeah. Remy's powers. He kinetically charges inorganic t'ings. Mostly, dese cards." As they watched, he charged up a card, the pinkish flames shooting up before he released the charge, and continued flipping through the cards. "Remy is also an empath. He can sense emotions from people. Comes in handy wit' de ladies." He winked at Rogue and her friends. The professor cleared his throat.

"Carol?"

"Well, as the professor said, my name is Carol Danvers. I've done some work with the government, namely with the CIA. I also served as a Major in the US Air force. I've been called in recently by the government as their superhuman liason on homeland security, given my, well, background. My powers include flight, with speeds up to 700mph, invulnerability, and superhuman strength, I can lift up to about 75 tons, give or take."

Most of the room was utterly shocked. The woman was thin, very insignificant looking.

"Dieu...Suddenly, Remy's resume don' look so impressive, non?"

The rest of the meeting was uneventful. Cyclops outlined the training schedule and Xavier handed out the teaching schedules for the two new instructors. As the room cleared, Remy noticed Bobby approach Rogue again, to which she replied,

"If Ah'm such a baby, that doesn't know what's good for mahself, why don't you try goin' out with that Danvers woman? She's practically Colossus with boobs. That should be right up your alley."

Colossus just happened to be passing by at that point in time.

"Bobby, I didn't know you felt that way..."

Bobby, in his rage, punched Pete in the stomach, which only resulted in him nearly breaking his hand. Remy watched as Bobby whined and Rogue rolled her eyes and walked away. He intercepted her in the upper hallway, just outside of her room.

"Remy heard what happened wit' de Popsicle."

"Gambit, the whole mansion heard what happened."

He took her gloved hand and smiled warmly. "Chere, call me Remy."

She yanked her hand back and stepped around him. "How about ah just call you Swamp Rat? If you'll excuse me, Ah'm going to bed." She walked up to her bedroom and went inside, slamming the door behind her.

Remy pulled out his bo staff and leaned on it. He had never been brushed off like that before. And "Swamp Rat" wasn't much of a pet name, either. Usually, women just melted when he turned on his charm. But not this one. He kicked his staff up into the air and caught it, pushing the button that retracted it, and tucking it back inside of his coat. He had never been one to back away from a challenge, and he wasn't about to start now. He heard footsteps and voices coming up the stairs, and he immediately recognized them as belonging to Rogue's roommates. When the two women reached the top of the stairs, they found him leaning against the wall, smoking.

"Hey, new guy. The Professor hates it when people smoke in the house... just a heads up."

"Ah, t'anks..."

"Jubilee."

"Right, Jubilee." He extinguished the cigarette and threw the butt into a nearby potted plant.

"And Storm doesn't take too kindly to people using her plants as ashtrays." The other girl spoke up.

"Don' Remy know it." He bent over and buried the butt in the dirt. "Our little secret, non?"

"Yeah, whatever."

"Kitty, wasn't it?"

"Yep, that's right."

"Hey, not that I don't enjoy having hot guys hanging around my room at night, but what exactly are you doing here?" Jubilee had a very...interesting way of getting straight to the point.

"Remy ain' gonna lie. He came up here to check on Rogue. T'inks that mebbe dere's something he can do for her."

"Hah... doubtful."

"An' why is dat?"

The two looked at each other, both wondering how much they should tell him. He could tell by the way that their faces both suddenly sobered that there was something important that he didn't know about Rogue. Hundreds of possibilities as to what that something might be ran through his head. Kitty's soft voice brought him back to the present.

"She can't touch."

"Pardon?" He wasn't quite sure that he heard her correctly.

"It's her mutation. Whenever she comes into contact with someone, skin to skin, she absorbs them. She basically takes whatever their abilities are. And they usually end up in a coma."

"That's why she's always covered up." Jubilee offered.

"Merde... dat must be tough."

"Yeah. Bobby was the first boyfriend that she had since the guy that she nearly killed when she found out about her powers."

"I see..." He really didn't know what to say. For him, physical contact had always been an integral part of his life. He couldn't even begin to imagine what it must be like to not have that ability. He was beginning to see, however, that this woman was different on many different levels. Not only did she ignore his advances, but if he were to crack that shell, he would still not be able to really have a relationship with her. At least the kind that he was used to.

"So, good luck with that, Remy." Kitty turned and headed towards their room.

"Yeah, and don't worry. We're on your side. But if you hurt her, you will have sparks flying up that cute little ass of yours."

"Jubes!"

"Figuratively speaking." Jubilee was yanked towards the door before she could amend her statement further. Kitty seemed to disappear right through the door itself, but as Jubilee turned the knob, she shot fireworks off in his direction, as if to prove a point. As soon as the small explosions were heard, Kitty poked her head through the door and grabbed Jubilee by the wrist, pulling her straight through the wood as well.

"Remy walked into a madhouse..." He said as he headed down the hall towards his room.

* * *

The water began to rise, the flames seemingly taking a shape of their own. In a sudden burst, a gigantic fireball exploded out of the lake, burning, suspended in midair for a short time before shaping itself into a large bird. As the flames continued to lick at the air, as if daring any insects or birds to come near, they slowly began to part in the center of the fiery bird, and the vague form of a woman could be seen. Though in all actuality, the flames should have been consuming the woman, killing her, they seemed instead to be breathing life into her, her body becoming more and more defined as they blazed on. The woman's face began to take shape, and although the eyes were different, filled with not only the fire that surrounded her, but also something else, something deeper, the face, the red hair, belonged, irrefutably, to one person. 

"JEAN!" Scott shot up in bed, sweat dripping from his body. He was shaking uncontrollably. It wasn't the first time that he had had nightmares about Alkali lake, but it was definitely different. It was more vivid. It was accompanied by the familiar nudge that came with a telepathic message. It felt more like a projected reality than a dream. He stood up shakily and stumbled into the bathroom. Looking at himself in the mirror, he closed his eyes and removed his glasses, splashing water on his face. Replacing the glasses and seeing the world once again in it's familiar crimson tint, he decided that it wasn't a dream. Never had the sky been that blue in his dreams. It had always been a shade of purple, as he saw it. The only times that he could recall it being that perfectly shaded were the times that Jean had projected images into his mind, the shared moments of sunsets, of perfectly cloudless days. He put on his bathrobe and headed to the kitchen. Maybe some milk would help him get back to sleep. He sank down in a chair and sipped his milk. The image of Jean, covered in fire, yet seemingly thriving, would not leave his mind. He knew that there was only one way to calm his nerves. He tossed the glass into the sink and headed towards the Professor's suite. As he reached to knock on the door, the Professor entered his mind.

"Get Cerebro ready, I'll be down in a moment."

* * *

A/N: Well there we go... another chapter. Reviews are more than welcome :-) 


	4. part 4

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the X-Men.

* * *

Logan and Carol were in the kitchen, talking and sipping coffee.

"So you really don't remember me?"

"I told you, I don't remember anything."

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that."

"Join the club, doll."

Just then, Gambit bounced into the room.

"Mornin'!"

"Hello, Remy."

Wolverine just grunted. He wasn't much of a morning person. Not much of a people person, either. And the fact that he didn't trust Gambit, especially around Rogue, who was like a daughter to him, didn't help at all. Logan glared at the young man as he happily went about his business, smiling. He grabbed three donuts and a bottle of soda, before leaping onto the counter to eat.

"Kid, don't put your ass where I eat."

Remy smiled. "Oops. Adieu, mes Amis." He shoved the bottle of soda into his pocket and put the remaining donut in his mouth, then jumped out of the window, landing on the tree outside and climbing away.

"Gumbo's a regular monkey, ain't he?"

Carol laughed, and Logan broke his normal sullen demeanor and smiled back.

* * *

Saturday mornings were nice and slow, and the three girls enjoyed them to their fullest. Rogue used this particular Saturday to catch up on the novel she was reading. Jubilee used it to torture Kitty.

"Ow! You pulled my hair again!"

"Sorry, chica... you should hold still." Jubilee was sitting on the edge of her bed and Kitty was on the floor, having her hair braided. Jubilee reached into the small baggie that she had.

"Oh, crap. Hey, Rogue! Do you have any ponytail thingies?"

Rogue peeked up from behind her book. "What are you, twelve?"

A flying Barbie doll answered the question for her. She rolled her eyes and reached into her bedside table, pulling out a little box and hurling it back at Jubilee.

"Thanks, babe."

"Don't mention it." She went back to reading, and Jubilee decided to stir things up a little.

"So... how's Bobby?"

The book immediately fell and Rogue sighed. "Ah think you know the answer to that."

"So, it's over?" Kitty chimed in.

"Ah don't see how it couldn't be. He's such an asshole."

"He's a hot asshole."

"You want him? Ah know Ah sure don't."

"I'll take him"

"No, Kitty, I called him first!" Jubilee pulled Kitty's hair.

"Ouch! That hurt, you bitch!" Kitty jumped up and lunged at Jubilee, pinning her to the bed. Jubilee pointed her hands at Kitty's face and started to send sparks right up at her, which forced Kitty to phase, freeing Jubilee from her grasp. Jubilee flipped backwards and rolled into a fighting stance. Kitty jumped onto the bed and struck a "Karate Kid" pose.

"Woooooaaaaaaahhh!"

Rogue was watching from her bed, and she picked up a pair of shoes, hurling one at Jubilee and another at Kitty. Jubilee dodged the shoe easily, and Kitty phased through it, causing it to smash into the headboard of Jubilee's bed. The loud noise made Kitty look behind her, which gave Jubilee the upper hand. She jumped up and landed on top of her friend, pinning her to the bed.

"Phase your way out of this!"

"Jubes, that's a dumb line... You know that she can... and will."

In response, Jubilee shot sparks off at Rogue, who leapt up from her bed and walked over.

"Don't make me do it..." She reached out towards Jubilee, who noticed at the last second that she wasn't wearing gloves, and sent off enough sparks to almost singe Rogue's hand, thus driving her back.

"That hurts!"

"What, and having the life sucked out of you doesn't?"

"Speaking of suck..." She grabbed the pillow off of Jubilee's bed and raised it above her head. As she brought it down onto her friends, a pack of playing cards fell out and hit her on the back of the head.

"Ow!" She smacked Jubilee with the pillow then went back to her own bed. "Who the hell keeps CARDS in their pillow?!"

Jubilee raised her hand. "I do."

Kitty kicked her off and took her place next to the bed. "Finish whatever you were doing, Jubes."

Jubilee situated herself above Kitty and continued to braid her hair.

"Speaking of cards, did you see the new guy?"

Rogue had picked up her book again and was only halfway interested in the conversation. "LeBeau."

"No, Danvers," Jubilee rolled her eyes sarcastically. "Yeah, LeBeau. He's pretty tasty."

"Don't you think of anything else?" Kitty teased.

"Huh? What did you say? I was lost in Pete's eyes"

"Don't even start..." Kitty looked up at her and glared.

"Fine, fine... while we're on the topic, did you see the new guy's eyes?"

"Yeah, talk about weird."

"I know! They're creepy."

"They're scary!"

"They're beautiful." Both of the girls looked over at their roommate in shock. Rogue put down the book again. "What? They are."

A smile spread across Jubilee's face. "Oh, really?"

Rogue threw another pillow at Jubilee, who set fireworks off in the general direction of her friend. Rogue picked up the book. "Let's not talk about this anymore, ok?"

"At least not while you're in the room"

"Shut up, Kitty."

"She has a point, Rogue. You know we'll talk about it as soon as you leave. Isn't it better to get it all out?"

"It's best to never say it, Jubes."

"That's too much to ask of me, and you know it. So when ya gonna ask him out?"

"Good God, Jubilee! Ah just broke up with Bobby yesterday."

"Out with the old, in with the new..."

"Ya really ain't helping, Kitty."

"Don't listen to her, yes you are."

"Don't join the dark side."

"You're such a dork."

"Takes one to know one, sugah."

"GUYS! Stop it. Now who's acting like they're twelve?!" Kitty served as the voice of reason.

"She started it."

Kitty and Rogue screamed at the same time. "Jubes!" In response, Jubilee stuck her tongue out and went back to braiding Kitty's hair. Rogue made a triumphant face at Jubilee and went back to her book. A couple of minutes later, though, she put the book down and sniffed the air.

"D'you smell that?"

"Jubilee... did you set the something on fire?"

"I don't think so..." They all started to search the room, and Rogue finally pinpointed the source of the smoke.

"Wait, it's coming from outside." They all ran to the balcony, to see what was happening. Usually, when smoke was coming in, it meant that someone had tripped the security system and shorted the wires. This time, however, the three were surprised to see Remy sitting in the tree just below the balcony, smoking.

"Speak of the devil."

"'Ello, Chere... Lovely morning, non?"

"How long have you been out here, Swamp Rat?"

"Long enough."

Jubilee and Kitty giggled, and Rogue glared. She turned on her friends, and herded them back into the room, slamming the doors behind her and leaving Remy outside alone.

"Remy can play de game."

He swung down and into the open kitchen window. As much as he would have loved to hang around all day, he had a danger room session to get ready for.

* * *

"All I'm saying, Mr. Summers, is that you've been under a lot of stress lately. Perhaps you misinterpreted the dream."

"Dr. McCoy, I'm not going crazy. I swear, she sent me a message."

"You watched her die. That's never an easy thing. But the bottom line is, she's dead."

"I'm telling you, she isn't. And when the Professor comes out of there, he'll agree."

The two were standing outside of Cerebro, where the Professor had been searching for Jean for a good five hours.

"Why is it taking so long?!"

"What, for you to change out of your jammies?" Logan, what a comedian. He snickered at Scott's unkempt look and headed into the control booth of the Danger room, followed closely by Storm, Carol, Jubilee, Kitty, Bobby, Colossus, Rogue, Nightcrawler, and Gambit. Hank patted Scott on the shoulder.

"I'd better go in and help run the simulations. You come and get me when you've heard from him."

* * *

"Ok. Since this is the first session with our two newest members, we're going to take it a bit easy on them. But don't expect this to happen often. Get your tails down there."

Logan loaded up the program as Hank walked into the room.

"I can run this if you wish to participate in the session."

"Why don't you go have some fun, Doc?"

"Thank you for the offer, but I'm a bit out of practice. I'll just sit up here if you don't mind."

"Suit yourself."

* * *

The room was suddenly transformed into a large field, with trees bordering on one side and a lake on the other.

"Great! A picnic." Jubilee started to look around. "Who's got the basket?"

"You're a moron." Kitty said it before Rogue had the chance to.

"Dis don' seem too much like a fighting simulation to Remy..."

"Just wait for it, Swamp Rat. Logan has a twisted sense of humor."

"Da. We will see the whole thing in a moment."

As if to prove Colossus' point, a large white van drove up. The entire team assumed fighting stances, as the door of the van slid open. Seconds later, a large troupe of Girl Scouts rushed out of the van.

"That's...unusual." Carol suggested.

The girls rushed around the field, playing different games. Some of them acknowledged the presence of the team, while others ignored them. Jubilee walked up behind Kitty and Rogue and pointed to a group of girls playing soccer.

"Think they'll let us join?"

"Ah hope not."

They turned around, as Storm spied some new arrivals on the scene.

"We've got company."

Sure enough, a large cluster of gigantic robotic sentinels was headed out of the woods

"Let the fun begin." Jubilee rolled up her sleeves. Colossus turned himself into the organic metal mammoth that he was most effective as, and Remy pulled out a handful of cards and his bo staff. The sentinels headed towards the Girl Scouts, who were now cowering in fear. As the giant robots corralled the girls, the team jumped into action. They picked off one of the sentinels rather easily, and Carol and Colossus carried it over to the edge of the field, creating something of a barrier where they could put the children to keep them out of the line of fire. With Cyclops sitting the exercise out, Storm was in charge.

"Ok. Rogue, Jubilee, Nightcrawler. Get the kids behind this sentinel. Everybody else, lets take the rest of these guys down." She flew into the air, summoning the largest, most powerful lightning bolt that she could. It struck the first of the sentinels, causing it to teeter slightly. Carol grabbed Kitty and flew her up to the top of the sentinel. With a nod, she let go of the younger woman, who phased through the sentinel, shorting it out. As it started to crash down, Carol intercepted it and threw it into the woods. Rogue, who was herding the children towards the first sentinel with Jubilee, turned to her friend.

"She's good."

"Oh yeah."

"What ah wouldn't give for powers like that."

"I hear you, babe."

They reached the safety of the hulking sentinel just as Nightcrawler teleported the last of the children out of the field.

"If you two wish to join in, I will be able to take care of the Kindern." Rogue and Jubilee nodded, and headed out to see what they could do. As they ran onto the field, they immediately saw Remy and Colossus engaging one of the sentinels. Remy was sending cards at the back of the sentinel, trying to disable its battery pack. Colossus was repeatedly striking it at the joints, wherever the weakest point that he could reach was. Nearby, Bobby was trying to ice up a smaller sentinel, but it kept on breaking free. Jubilee and Rogue headed over to him, and Jubilee did her best to distract him while Rogue went over to Bobby and kissed him, holding on long enough to borrow his powers, but not long enough for him to pass out. Once the transfer was complete, Rogue and Bobby iced the sentinel up at the same time, which was enough to take the sentinel down. The smaller sentinel skidded across the ground, knocking the legs out from under the larger sentinel that Colossus and Gambit were working on. Gambit was the first to notice that the larger sentinel was about to crash down on top of Bobby and Rogue. Bobby noticed seconds later, and leapt out of the way. Gambit hurled himself under the falling robot, grabbing Rogue and rolling out just in time.

As he stood Rogue up to make sure that she was ok, a cold gust of air hit him, followed by a hard, cold mass.

"What de..."

It was too late for him to get out of the way, and the ice blast hit him full on. He was knocked unconscious, and the last thing that he heard was Rogue's scream.

"Bobby! What the hell?! Logan, end the simulation. Now!"

* * *

A/N: Didn't take too long... I wanted to make sure I got this up before I'm unable to post for the weekend... But still, I love reviews! 


	5. part 5

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the X-men.

* * *

The simulation ended, and seconds later, both Logan and Hank were running into the Danger Room as fast as they could. Hank easily overtook Logan, and reached Remy's side first. Scooping him up, he headed out of the room and towards the Med Lab. Logan, upon reaching the group, turned to Bobby.

"What was that, Popsicle?"

"An accident."

"I know what I was, bub, and that wasn't an accident. I don't know what the hell is wrong with you, but you'd better get over it, and soon. You put the whole team in danger there."

"Logan. What happened?" Storm had been busy at the time of the incident.

"Rogue and Ice prick here had just taken down one of the 'bots, and another was about to fall on him and Rogue. He saved his own ass, then Gumbo sweeped in at the last second and got Rogue out of there. When they were out of harm's way, Drake blasted him with a stream of ice, knocking the kid out."

"Robert? Care to explain yourself?"

Bobby looked around, then rolled his eyes. "I thought that he was part of the sentinel and that it was shooting off of the main body towards me. I tried to block it." A quick glance around the room told him that no one believed his story. "Ok, I was going to build a pillar of ice to keep it from falling on Rogue. He got in the way."

"Listen, Iceface, none of us believe a word of this shit you're feeding us."

"Logan!" Storm interrupted.

"OK!" Bobby screamed. "I thought he was… making a move on my girl."

"What?" Logan spat. "Are you really that…" Before he could finish his question, though, Rogue erupted.

"What the fuck is your problem, Bobby?! Ah told ya, it's over. And ya know why? Because of things like that. You're such a fucking jealous moron that ya didn't even care that Ah was safe, it just mattered that HE was th' one who did it. Ah've told ya before, Ah don't need you t' protect me. Ah'm not a helpless little whiny piece of shit, and Ah don't need it."

Logan was surprised. He had never really heard Rogue swear before, and he had certainly never heard her rage like that. He turned to Bobby, to see what his reaction was.

"Rogue, you kissed me!"

This was starting to become a soap opera.

"Only so Ah could borrow your powers! Ah didn't have time t' take off a glove, that thing woulda killed ya by then. Ah can't believe you. IF ya'll will excuse me, Ah'm goin' to see just how much damage Bobby did t' Remy."

"SEE?! Now you're calling him by his first name!"

Rogue left the room, flipping him the bird on her way out. An uncomfortable silence ensued, which Jubilee broke by smacking Bobby on the back of the head and asking,

"She calls me by my first name, too. You gonna try to kill me?"

"No, Jubes—"

"Don't call me that. I'm not looking for a relationship right now."

"That's not what I meant! I just—"

"Save it, Bobby." Kitty had come up beside Jubilee. "Nobody wants to hear it."

Logan still had his back to Bobby, and addressed him without turning around. "You're lucky I ain't looking at you. Or else you might not have anything to look back with." He started to walk out of the room, and Carol and Storm rushed after him. Colossus tapped Kitty on the shoulder, and asked timidly, "Katya? Is it alright if I am hitting the showers?"

Kitty nodded, and Nightcrawler put his hand on his large friend's shoulder.

"I will join you." Seconds later, there was a loud "BAMF", and they were gone. Bobby turned to the two girls and pleaded with them.

"You know that he likes her. You would have done the same thing."

Jubilee stepped right in front of him and pointed her finger at his face, making him flinch.

"I also know that she doesn't like you, and that that is more important." She shot off sparks at him, but they went right through. Peering around him, she saw that kitty had grabbed a fistful of his hair and turned him intangible.

"Jubes. Don't hurt him." Bobby breathed a sigh of relief. At least someone was on his side.

"What?! You saw what he did!"

"Yeah, and you don't want to stoop to his level."

"Thanks, Kitty. It's good to know that…"

"Drake, I hate you. Never think otherwise." She returned him to his regular, solid state, and shoved him, making him fall.

"Come on, Jubes. Lets get out of here."

* * *

From his spot outside Cerebro, Scott had witnessed some of what happened, although he had no details. He had seen Hank emerge from the room carrying Gambit, then, moments later, he had seen Rogue rush out and follow them. He had seen Logan, too, come out and head towards the elevator, followed closely by Storm and Carol. When Jubilee and Kitty walked out moments later, and he saw the look on Jubilee's face, he really started to get interested. Nothing seemed to faze her. Ever. He peeked around the corner and into the room, where he saw Bobby standing up slowly. The door slid shut, as Bobby began to scream. He adjusted his glasses and turned back towards cerebro, where he was surprised to find the Professor emerging. 

"Well?!"

"Perhaps you had better come inside, Scott."

Scott nodded, and followed the Professor. As the Professor put on the familiar helmet, he turned slightly to Scott.

"Don't move."

The walls shuddered and the metal plates disappeared, replaced by a glowing white map of the world.

"The white lights are humans." The map changed to red, illuminating slightly different parts of the earth. "The red, mutants." The map again changed, this time zooming in on the area surrounding Alkali lake. The red and white lights both appeared, showing the mutant and human activity surrounding the area. Part of the map glowed a faint green.

"See the green spot? That is where we last saw Jean. When I returned from that and checked Cerebro, the area was not green."

"What does that mean?"

"A disturbance in the water. Something that is neither human nor completely mutant. The only other time that I have seen this particular shade of green before was when I was tracking my half-brother. He carries an advanced mutant signature. So does Dr. McCoy."

"Why?"

"Their mutations were triggered by some unnatural occurrence. Dr. McCoy, for example, was doing research and tested a formula on himself, thus causing his body to advance itself by force, giving him his blue appearance."

"So he's not supposed to be blue?"

"Not yet. His agility and size are his primary mutation. The fur is a secondary mutation, not meant to be triggered until much later in his life."

"So does that mean that Jean's alive?"

"That's where this gets tricky. At first, I thought that the near drowning triggered her secondary mutation, thus saving her life. But when I concentrate on her mental patterns, I cannot locate her."

"Can't you just find whatever that green thing is and ask it?"

"I was unable to get a lock on it until this morning. It was not fully formed, but now it is. I can show you what it looks like, if you wish."

"I do."

"Very well." He concentrated and the map shifted again, showing an area somewhere just above the international border. People, both mutant and human, were running, cars were flying into buildings as if they were blown. What looked like a green tornado was tearing down the street. It came to a stop at the corner and materialized into a large bird. Scott immediately recognized it.

"It's her." Seconds later, the face finished forming, and the Professor, too, saw her. She grinned maniacally and returned to her blurred state, tearing down yet another street. The professor zoomed out again, showing the map in a pale orange, with neither the humans nor the mutants highlighted. The only other color was green. Two green dots, one in Westchester, the other in Canada.

"The lower dot is Henry. The other is 'Jean'. This," a blue dot formed at Alkali lake "is where she supposedly died. Given her path of destruction…" a dotted white line formed. "She is on her way here as we speak."

* * *

Jubilee banged on the bathroom door. 

"Rogue, come out of there." Rogue had returned to their room some time after they had. She reported that Remy was alright, and headed straight into the bathroom, where she had been for a good fifteen minutes.

"No."

Kitty came up beside Jubilee. "Then I hope you're dressed, because if you don't come out, I'm coming in."

"Fuck off. Both of you."

"You know we can't do that, Rogue. You need to talk. Get out of there and come talk to us."

"Ah said no."

"Rogue, this is your last warning… I'm coming in if you aren't coming out."

All three of them knew that Kitty wouldn't do it. She had a big problem with using her powers to invade in other people's privacy. But desperate times called for desperate measures.

"No, ya won't."

Jubilee patted her on the shoulder and shrugged. She had tried. Now it was Jubilee's turn.

"Rogue, If you don't come out of there in ten seconds, I will break this door down." That, on the other hand, was most definitely not an idle threat.

"Ya break it, ya bought it."

"I'll put it on my charge card. Get your ass out here. Now."

Before Rogue had a chance to answer, someone walked through the door. The balcony door.

"Remy hopes dat's a Capital One "no hassle" card. Ot'erwise, de rates…"

"Uh… were you outside again?"

"Remy likes to sit in de trees. Sometimes, he gets lucky and finds a good tree. Mind if I try?" He pointed towards the bathroom door and Jubilee and Kitty both stepped away, letting him take over the effort.

"Chere? You ok?"

"Go away."

"Non, you know Remy can't do that. We need to talk."

"Ah said leave me alone, Swamp Rat."

"Remy has t' ask you somet'ing."

"Do it through the door."

"Remy likes to look at people in de eyes when he talks. And he got a feelin' dat you feel de same way."

"X-men, please report to my office", Xavier's telepathic message interrupted their conversation. Seconds later, Rogue came barreling out of the bathroom, shoving Remy out of the way. He looked over at Jubilee and Kitty for a second, before following her out of the room. Jubilee started for the door, but before she could make it, Kitty grabbed her arm and pulled her through the floor, into the library, where they nearly landed on a student.

"Ah!"

"Sorry... carry on."

They walked to the professor's office, where they were surprised to see Scott in full uniform.

"You missed the training session, fearless leader."

He didn't even acknowledge Jubilee's comment, and she rolled her eyes and decided not to press it.

* * *

Bobby had sat back down on the ground, too upset with himself to even change out of his uniform. When the Professor summoned him, he stood up slowly, and walked out of the Danger room, hanging his head. He hadn't even heard Beast padding along behind him in the hallway. 

"Mr. Drake?"

"Huh? Oh, Dr. McCoy. Hey."

"Please, call me Hank. Twinkie?"

"Wha?" He looked back. The large, blue man had a small box tucked under his arm and was eating one of the cakes.

"Would you like a twinkie?"

"Would I ever." He accepted one of them and started to eat. He was grateful that Dr. McCoy didn't bring up what had happened in the danger room. At the same time, though, he felt as if he owed some kind of explanation.

"About what happened in there... I didn't really think about what I was doing. I just sort of... did it."

"Mr. Drake, People do things that they regret. It is a wise man, however, who understands the reasons."

"I was just so upset. And he... he's the reason that she broke up with me. I just know it."

"Did she say so?"

"Well, no."

"Then you do not know it. Horrible things have happened because of assumptions."

"I guess you're right."

They got off the elevator, and Bobby turned to his new, fuzzy friend.

"Thanks, Dr...Hank. And call me Bobby."

* * *

A/N: Another chapter... yay? I felt sort of bad having Bobby flip out like that and then just end up being a dick for all of eternity... He's not really a bad guy, he just doesn't belong with Rogue, that's all... Matter of opinion, I guess. But anyways, Reviews make me happy (hint hint). 


	6. part 6

DISCLAIMER: I still do not own the X-men. But I do own this story.

* * *

By the time Hank and Bobby reached the office, the rest of the team had assembled. Logan shot him a look as he walked in, but other than that he was relatively ignored. He looked around to see if he could find a place to sit near Rogue. 

"Now that we're all here," The Professor began. "I have some news to report. It seems as though there was a disturbance at Alkali lake." The name of that place got mixed reception from the assembled people. Logan inhaled sharply and furrowed his brow, Rogue got wide-eyed, and Storm was confused. Bobby and Kurt both hung their heads, and Cyclops was doing his best to not burst into tears. Logan spoke up.

"What kind of a disturbance?"

"It appears that Jean Grey may not be deceased, as we have all assumed." Those who had been present and witnessed the event all gasped. How could anyone have survived that?

"What's more," he continued. "She seems to be coming home. Back to Westchester. However, there is a downside. She isn't acting like herself. At all. On her way here, she is forging a large path of destruction. It may be unsafe for the children to be here when she arrives. Scott and I have devised a plan, however. We will contain the children in the Danger room until the rest of the team confronts her and is able to assure that it is safe for the children to be here. Jubilee and Kitty, since the students seem more at ease with you in charge, you will stay with them. Henry, you shall be positioned in the med lab, in case of an emergency. The rest of you will wait in the main foyer for her arrival. I will be in Cerebro, trying to contact her as she nears the mansion. Perhaps it will become more possible the closer she gets."

"Professor, maybe the Popsicle should be with the little ones as well."

Bobby looked angrily at Wolverine, and the Professor turned to him questioningly.

"And why is that, Logan?"

"He flipped out during training. Knocked Gumbo clean off his feet."

"Is this true, Robert?"

"Yeah. But it won't happen again, I promise."

"Remy, are you alright?"

"Oui."

"Hm. Well, perhaps it is best if you sit this one out, Robert."

"But, I—"

"I am not ready to take any chances. You, along with Jubilation and Katherine, will keep the children company in the danger room."

"Professor, I don't want to be stuck in there with him again."

Kitty hit Jubilee, who rolled her eyes and sighed.

* * *

"I don't know, ask the big, bad Iceman." Jubilee had been directing all of the questions regarding why they were all stuck in there and where babies come from towards Bobby, although she usually enjoyed making up elaborate stories in response. Kitty had programmed a playground into the room, as well as a petting zoo a pool. Jubilee was playing lifeguard, while Kitty kept watch over the play area. They had delegated the task of making sure that people weren't being gnawed on by goats to Bobby. 

Down the hall, the team was suiting up. In the girl's locker room, Rogue was pulling on a dark green glove. She looked around. The room was so empty, what with Jubilee and Kitty already being dressed. She shrugged on her jacket and examined herself in the mirror, making sure that she hadn't forgotten anything. She looked at herself in her uniform and smiled. She had been so proud when, upon their return from Alkali lake, she and Bobby had been issued the standard uniforms. After multiple long discussions with Logan and Ororo, she decided to approach Scott about changing the uniforms. They had taken a vote, and decided that each team member would be allowed to customize their uniform as they saw fit. She had had a lot of fun with that, and was proud to wear her new uniform. The best part about it was that it could pass for normal clothes. Almost. She headed back out of the locker area and into the war room, where Scott was setting up the map. When the rest of the team arrived, he began to give his orders. As he pointed out the current path of "Jean" on the map, as well as their positions, Rogue couldn't help but notice that Remy was staring at her instead of at Scott's presentation. She turned a little bit away from him and closed her coat around her. Scott finished his instructions just as the professor announced that Jean was within twenty miles of the mansion. The team hurried to the elevator and reached the front foyer, where they set themselves up for the battle. Rogue, Gambit, and Carol climbed the stairs and positioned themselves so that they could see her approaching up the driveway. Storm leapt into the air and hovered above Wolverine, while Nightcrawler teleported up to the chandelier. Colossus, Cyclops, and Wolverine stood in front of the door, ready for whatever would come through. Rogue sat on the window ledge, peering out. Carol had taken flight and headed out through the window to see where Jean was exactly. Gambit sidled up to Rogue and whistled.

"Nice uniform you got dere."

"Cram it, Cajun. This ain't the time."

"Chere, it's always de…" He was cut off as Carol came barreling back through the window.

"She just reached the driveway. Coming in fast."

Gambit spun around and extended his bo staff, and Rogue leapt down from the window ledge, still keeping a watch on the driveway. She saw something coming up, a large fiery form. Squinting, she made out the basic edges of it.

"Looks like a bird."

Gambit came up beside her. "A …big, fiery bird."

Rogue turned to Carol and took off a glove. "Ya ready?"

"Do it." Carol extended her bare arm, and Rogue grabbed hold of it, absorbing Carol's abilities. Carol barely flinched during the transfer. After a few seconds, Rogue let go and put her glove back on.

"You ok?"

"I'm invulnerable, dear. Of course I'm ok."

Rogue smiled and looked out of the window again.

"Here we go." Just as the words escaped her mouth, the front door caved inward, sending shards of wood flying at the three men standing in the foyer. From where she was standing, Rogue could feel the heat emanating from whatever the being was. she leapt into the air as a small flame shot up through the floor, and was surprised to find herself suspended there, floating.

"Woah." She turned to Carol, who laughed.

"Cool, huh?"

"Ah'll say." Down below, Wolverine, Colossus, and Cyclops had all taken fighting stances. Cyclops had his hand to his visor, ready to blast if necessary. Wolverine had unsheathed his claws, and Colossus was in his metal form. Given the nature of this particular adversary, Scott wanted to try the diplomatic approach first.

"Jean? Want to tell us what's going on here?"

In response, the bird spread it's wings to show the outline of a woman, completely engulfed in flames. The woman slowly descended, until she was touching the ground. As she stepped onto the ground, the bird apparition shrunk back into her fiery body. She took a step closer to the three men, and Wolverine looked at Cyclops.

"I don't think this is Jean, bub."

The fiery woman looked up towards the chandelier, where Nightcrawler was hanging. Seconds later, it came crashing down. Colossus rolled out of the way, taking Logan with him. Scott incinerated the piece of the heavy fixture that was to come crashing down on him. Kurt teleported up onto the balcony just before it hit.

"Ms.Grey is very different from what I remember."

Carol nodded to Rogue, and they both took flight. Scott noticed that everyone was getting ready to strike, and tried to talk to her one last time.

"Jean! Why are you doing this?"

The fiery apparition smiled and spoke, in a voice that was Jean's, yet at the same time was different.

"Jean is dead. I am the Phoenix."

Scott removed his hand from his visor. He hated it when people reminded him of Jean's death. The Phoenix noticed his move, and the next second, he was flying out of control towards the stairs. Gambit winced as Scott's body went straight through the wall, causing most of the stairs to collapse. He charged up a handful of cards and flung them at the Phoenix, but it simply deflected them and sent them back at him. He dodged them and rolled into a ball to avoid the glass that was shattering from the window behind him. Colossus and Wolverine had charged the Phoenix again, and Rogue and Carol were taking turns flying at it at top speeds and punching it. Nightcrawler had disappeared somewhere under the wreckage, intent on finding Scott and getting him down to the med lab. Storm used the now open window to generate a gigantic lightning bolt, but it seemed to do little more than fuel the Phoenix. Kurt re-emerged from the wreckage with Scott who was surprisingly uninjured. As he stood back up, Cyclops gave the final order.

"Plan B!"

For a brief second, all eyes went to Rogue. She closed her eyes momentarily and swallowed. She had hoped that it would not come to this. She took off her gloves and reared up. The rest of the team was doing their best to keep the Phoenix occupied, and she went towards it at the fastest speed she could, latching onto it with her bare hands and with a strength that she herself did not possess. Silently, she thanked Carol for letting her borrow it, and she concentrated, preparing to order the thoughts that came into her head. The rest of the team had stepped down, since the Phoenix seemed to have stopped fighting. The flames began to dwindle, and the fiery woman shrunk back into the body of Jean. Scott rushed to her side, as the last of the fire disappeared.

"Jean!"

She looked up at him. "Scott… I…tried…" Then, she went limp. Rogue released her grip on the woman, and closed her eyes. She had never had anything like this inside her head before. She looked up and found herself staring into the concerned eyes of both Logan and Remy.

"Kid, you alright?"

"You ok, Chere?"

She nodded. "Ah just need t' lie down… she…it is in my head now, and it ain't too happy about it."

"I'll walk you to your room" Both men said it at the same time. She looked up at them, sensing the tension that came with the two offers.

"That's ok. Ah can still fly f'r about ten minutes. Might as well make use of it." She took off, as Scott lifted Jean into his arms.

"I'm taking her down to the doctor." Tears were streaming from beneath his visor, and he didn't bother to try and hide them. When he reached the elevator, it opened on it's own and the Professor nodded to him from inside.

"I got a brief mental reading of Jean's original brainwaves."

Scott nodded, as the elevator re-opened on the lower level. Hank was waiting there with a gurney. Scott gently set Jean down on it, and walked along side of it the whole way back to the lab, not once taking his eye off of her. He had lost her once, and he wasn't about to let it happen again. Henry immediately hooked her up to a number of sensors, and announced that she was stable, although comatose. The Professor wheeled up beside her and placed his hands on either side of her head. Scott could do little more than watch, as the Professor tried to bring her back to the conscious realm.

Upstairs, Colossus and Carol were piling the broken pieces of stairs in the front yard, as Nightcrawler and Remy worked on getting the shattered windows cleared. Colossus looked at the mess.

"Wonder how soon we can get a carpenter here to fix this?"

Logan came up beside him. "Don't bother. I can do it." Outside, the smell of burning wood was spreading. Storm had done her part and incinerated the broken pieces. The last of the glass was cleared up, and the only thing still dangerously broken was the window. That was remedied soon, though, as Carol and Storm taped up a large tarp to cover it until they could get someone there to fix it. Remy dumped the shovel full of glass into the garbage can and turned to the rest of the team.

"T'ink someone should relieve Jubilee and Kitty? Rogue might need dem right now." Everyone looked at him, and Logan silently cursed himself for not thinking of something like that first. Nightcrawler stepped up.

"I will go with you, mein freund." Remy nodded and tipped an imaginary hat to everyone else.

* * *

A/N: Took me a bit longer to get this out than I thought it would... I'd like to say that I'm holding the next chapter hostage, and that you will recieve it as soon as I get reviews, but judging from the reviews that I got for the last chapter (or the lack thereof), I honestly can't say that I'll be holding my breath. That said, help me get out of my little puddly of pity and review. 


	7. part 7

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the X-men.

Jubilee was not happy with the news that was reported to her.

"She WHAT?"

"Jus' what Remy said. She absorbed de Phoenix. Den she went crazy an' ran off to her room. Wouldn't let anyone near her. Said she had de Phoenix in her head or somet'ing."

"And the Phoenix is who exactly?"

Nightcrawler piped up. "Ms. Grey."

"I thought she was dead." She turned around and shouted across the room. "Bobby? Isn't Jean Grey dead?"

He was a bit startled. "Uh, last I checked."

"See? She's dead."

"Den who was de 'Jean' dat de Professor was talkin' about?"

"Crap. She's supposed to be dead. And why's she calling herself the Phoenix?"

Kurt again stepped up to answer the question. "She's alive. The Phoenix is a bird, common in many religions. When it nears death, it bursts into flame and is reborn from the ashes. Ms. Grey, when she died… the water was orange, as if it were on fire... I thought that I was the only one who saw it."

"I'm going upstairs." she turned and looked for her friend, then gave up and yelled. "KITTY! We're going upstairs!" Moments later, Kitty appeared at her side.

"Who's going to stay with the kids?"

"Bobby, the Elf, and Gambit."

"You sure that's safe?"

"I don't really care. Rogue absorbed the thing… whatever it was."

"She WHAT?"

"Exactly." They both took off towards the elevator.

The professor was having a lot of trouble sorting through Jean's mind and finding her. There were all kinds of things in there that didn't make any sense at all, memories that he knew for a fact, did not belong to her. It looked quite similar to a swamp, and each time he thought he was getting closer to finding her, he would get caught up on a piece of seaweed. Every now and then, though, he would stumble (quite literally) upon a memory that he knew was hers. Something about her childhood that she had told him, something that he had witnessed. But the purely Jean memories were quite hard to come by. He located a memory of Alkali Lake. Just as the water rushed over her body, into her lungs, something else did as well. He felt a burning sensation course through his throat, and into his heart. It spread out across his body, moving through pathways that he knew did not exist. That answered one question. It wasn't simply the ingested water. Seconds later, he felt the water being forced back out of her lungs, as she was pulled deeper beneath the surface. The memory ended, which most likely meant that she blacked out. He blinked once, releasing his hold on her mind. Scott noticed this action, as well as the flinching and contorted looks of pain that he had expressed during the reading.

"What happened?"

"Something saved her. Something came into her body and saved her."

"What?"

"I'm not sure."

Scott stood up and started pacing. He was generally calm, except when it came to Jean. He had barely stepped foot out of their bedroom for the first few months after her death.

"Scott. We will find out what happened, I assure you. It will just take time."

Scott didn't want it to take time. He had lost enough time with her already. He had thought that he had lost all time, and now that he knew it wasn't so, he intended to make up for it.

When Jubilee and Kitty had reached their room, Rogue was out on the balcony, leaning heavily on the railing. Jubilee walked over to her and joined her against the railing, while Kitty went into the bathroom to get an aspirin and a warm washcloth. Jubilee cleared her throat, and Rogue jumped a little.

"Sorry, chica. Hot Cajun told us what happened. You ok?"

Rogue closed her eyes and a pained look came over her face. Jubilee winced herself. She knew that whenever Rogue absorbed anyone, she had their voices and memories in her head for some time. Generally, it gave her bad headaches and identity "issues" for a number of days. Sometimes, they would walk into their room after a class or a meal or something and find Rogue wearing flannel and smoking a cigar, residual tendencies from when she absorbed Logan. Other times, she would suddenly lapse into fluent German, which she picked up from absorbing Kurt. Jubilee had joked that because of her powers, she now spoke more languages than everyone in the mansion except for the Professor. She was technically now fluent in not only English and French, which she had known before, but also German, Russian, Polish, and Japanese depending on which psyche was present. Generally though, she had it all under control. As she opened her eyes and looked back at her friend, though, Jubilee could tell that that control was shattered. Rogue's eyes had taken on the coldness that they only had when the personality of Magneto was surfacing. And that hadn't happened since just after she had absorbed him.

"Great." She turned back to the room. "Kitty? Hurrying it up here?"

Kitty fell through the wall to the left of the doors, carrying a glass of water and a bottle of pills.

"Sorry. I couldn't find the aspirin... who filled all of the bottles with candy?"

"Uhhh, doesn't matter, here." She took the bottle and shook two of the pills out, handing them to Rogue. Kitty offered the glass of water, and Rogue gulped down the pills, nodding. Jubilee put her and on Rogue's shoulder.

"They're all coming back, aren't they?"

Rogue nodded, and Kitty's face grew concerned. "All of them?"

Rogue could only nod again. Kitty put her hand on Rogue's arm. "Maybe you should come in and lie down..."

Rogue's response was a muttered "Just leave me alone." Before Jubilee could console her, she morphed into a bird and flew away.

"What the hell just happened?!"

"I don't know... She's never done that before."

"No shit."

"When did she absorb a shapeshifter?"

"I don't even think she's ever met one."

"Then where is she getting that from?"

"Don't ask me. But I know it ain't hers."

"We should go tell the professor."

"We should go tell the professor," Jubilee sing-songed back. "Why don't we just let her have some time alone?"

Kitty sighed. "Fine. But if she isn't back in two hours, I'm going to Xavier."

"Deal."

Jubilee went into the room and started to dig through Rogue's CD's.

"Look on the bright side. We can listen to her music while she's gone."

"You listen to her music even when she's here."

"Shut up, you." A CD case flew in Kitty's direction. Kitty phased through it, of course, and it flew over the balcony and into the trees.

"Ow." Kitty backed up slightly, before leaning over the railing again to find the source of the voice. Sitting in the tree, Remy rubbed his head.

"Dat hurt, chere."

"Remy!" Kitty hadn't expected to see him there.

Jubilee heard his name and came out onto the balcony, flipping through a magazine.

"Do you always hang out in trees outside of women's bedrooms?"

"Sometimes." He swung up and landed on the balcony, peering inside. "Is she ok?"

"We don't know. She turned into a little bird and flew away."

"Din' know she could do dat."

Jubilee smiled, turning the page. "SHE can't."

Thoroughly confused, Gambit just nodded slowly. "Right."

Jubilee laughed and headed back into the room, plopping herself down on her bed.

"She probably absorbed a shape-shifter. We think she's using someone else's powers somehow," Kitty clarified.

"She can do dat? Just use people's powers whenever she wants?"

"No. She can't, usually. Most of the time, she only has the person's powers for a short amount of time, basically until they come out of their little comas. She still has their voices in her head, but she stops being able to use their powers."

"It's like living with a Schizophrenic." Jubilee piped up. "Rogue, why did you rearrange the closet? 'Aw, th' voices told me to, sugah!'"

Gambit raised an eyebrow. "Your accent could use a little work, mon ami."

"Yeah, well..." She went back to the magazine, losing interest in the conversation.

Kitty rolled her eyes. "She loses track of time right after she absorbs things sometimes. It's like she doesn't realize where she's been or what she's done. Magneto almost took over once. Probably would have if Logan wasn't in there too."

"Magneto?"

"Old creepy guy. Kidnapped her about two years ago. Used her to power this big machine, but Logan stopped him and saved her life by letting her absorb him or something... I don't really know all of the details, you'll have to ask her."

"I'll do dat. T'anks for all de info." He hopped back into the tree, and started to climb up towards the roof, leaving Kitty standing on the balcony, staring in amazement. Before he jumped onto the roof, he heard Jubilee yell from inside.

"And stop sneaking around outside our room!"

A/N:It's a little short, I know... but the next chapter should be longer. The line thingy isnt working, so you'll have to deal with imagining them in there... Sorry.

Oh, and review :)


	8. part 8

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the X-Men.

He padded across the roof, not making any sound at all. Most people hated being snuck up on like that, but he was so used to walking softly, what with being a professional thief and all, that he couldn't even really help himself anymore. But as he approached the young woman who was now lying on her back in the shade of one of the mansion's many chimneys, he realized that no matter how quiet he was, she would know he was there. It was something of a sixth sense, he could tell when he was being detected. Of course, he hadn't known it during his art museum adventure, but generally, he could just feel it. He came up behind her and she tilted her head back, to look at him.

"Ah can smell you." She propped herself up on her elbows. "Ya also stepped in gum." Sniffing the air again, she clarified. "Juicy Fruit, t'be exact."

He checked his shoe. Sure enough, there was a pale yellow glob stuck there. He scraped it off against the chimney and turned back to her.

"Pick dat up from de Wolverine?"

"Yeah." She blinked and sniffed the air again. "It's gone now."

Remy leaned up against the chimney and slid down to a seated position, pulling a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket. He charged the tip just enough to light the cigarette, and took a drag. Rogue tipped her head back again and looked at him.

"Ya know those things'll kill you, right?"

He looked at her, slightly amused. "For a girl who calls herself Rogue..."

"Oh, shut up. Ya don't know anything about me or where Ah got that name from."

"Non, I don't. But you could tell me."

"Ah..." She thought a minute. Could she? The whole time that she had been there, there had always been a few things that she was unable to tell anyone, even Kitty and Jubilee. And they knew almost all of her secrets. Every time someone said anything to remind her of the time that she spent before joining the X-men, she cringed a little. She had considered telling everyone about what she had done, but then she would have to face the truth. And worst of all, she may not be welcome there anymore. She looked up at him again, and tried to read him. From what she could tell, he was genuinely interested in hearing the story. His red eyes burned into her mind, and she had to look away.

"Ah can't tell you that."

"Why not?"

She sighed. "Ah'm just too comfortable here. If Ah told you that, Ah'd have to leave."

"All of dat from jus' telling Remy how you got your name?"

"It's a little more complicated than that. Everyone here trusts me. If Ah lost that trust... Ah have nowhere else to go."

"I'm sure dat dere's not'ing you can say dat everyone won't understand. I mean, dey found me in jail, f'r crying out loud!"

"It's not the same."

"If you say so." A minute passed between them, and they were quiet. Remy smoked his cigarette, and Rogue just stared out at the gardens. She pulled herself up, and leaned up against the chimney next to him. He stubbed out the cigarette and followed her gaze. A group of the older girls were sunbathing by the pool, and one of them was rubbing lotion onto another's back. A sudden spurt of water shot at them from the pool, and they jumped in, grabbing the boy who had done it and tickling him. Rogue looked away from them, sighing. Trying to get her mind off of it, Remy cleared his throat.

"So... tell me about Magneto."

She gasped slightly and turned to him, concern spreading across her face.

"How did you know about that?"

"Kitty told me."

Her face softened a little bit as realization sunk in. "Oh, you mean Liberty Island? When he kidnapped me?"

"Yeah. What did you t'ink I meant?"

"Um... nothing. Yeah, Ah was kidnapped."

"Dat's it? 'I was kidnapped'? Pretty boring kidnapping, non?"

She smiled. "He held me prisoner then transferred his power to me so that this machine he built that turns people into mutants could wipe out the world leaders."

"Oh. Dat makes sense."

"Does it?"

"Non, not really."

She chuckled. "Guess not. It was powered by his specific mutation."

"So why didn't he do it himself?"

"It woulda killed him."

"But it didn't kill you."

"Yeah, it did." She pointed to her hair. "It sucked so much outta me, it started to drain the color."

"T'ought dat was just a, um, creative dye job."

"Yeah, Ah get that a lot. But Logan saved me. It knocked him out for two weeks, but he let me absorb his healing factor."

"Dat was nice of him."

"Tell me about it."

"Ok, I will. Well, if he hadn't done dat, I would have never met you and den—"

"Not literally. And so what?"

"Chere, I t'ink you know what."

"Oh, don't start with that again, Swamp Rat. Ah hate t' break it to ya, but you ain't God's gift t' women."

He grabbed his chest dramatically. "You wound me, Chere!"

"Doubtful."

"Non, really. Remy's never been turned down before."

"Ha! Ya know, Ah actually believe that."

"Dat's because it's true."

"Well, ya better get used to it, Gumbo."

"Again wit' de name callin'! And dat wasn't even one of your names!"

"Sorry... let a little Logan slip through."

"So was dat Logan turning me down or was that Rogue?"

"Both."

"Ah. I see." He stood up. "Well, nice chatting wit' you."

Rogue rolled her eyes and grabbed his leg before he could walk away. "Sit down, sugah. Ah didn't mean it like that. It's just... with Bobby and all, Ah don't want t' get back into things like that right now. You're still allowed t' talk to me, you know."

He sank down again, smiling. "Good."

"So tell me something about you."

"Well, I'm from N'Awlins"

"Ah know. I was there when ya got outta the slammer, remember?"

"Never forgot for one minute."

"Probably because it was two weeks ago."

"Maybe."

"So how about your family?"

"Don' really want t' talk about that. Might incriminate m'self"

She laughed. "Right."

"Non, I'm serious."

"Fine. Well, what do ya want to tell me then?"

"Hm. Wanna hear de dirt on Stormy?"

Her eyes widened, and she turned to face him. "Spill"

He grinned.

----------------------------  
Down in the medlab, Storm and Nightcrawler had talked Cyclops into going upstairs to eat and take a shower, and were sitting by Jean's bed. Kurt was sitting on the bed across from hers, his feet dangling below. Storm folded Jean's blanket down and smoothed it out. She looked down at her friend and sighed. In all the years that she knew Jean, she had never seen her look so helpless. Even when she slept, she had a certain look about her that told you not to try anything. Ororo patted Jean's forehead and sat down heavily in the chair. Kurt looked at her over the bed.

"She will pull through, Ororo."

"I hope so."

"She has so many people pulling for her. You must have faith."

Storm looked up at him. "Easier said than done, Kurt."

"But the reward for it is every bit worth the trouble."

Storm bowed her head again, and Kurt tried to change the subject.

"So... what was Herr Lebeau talking about earlier?"

"Oh, nothing really. I spent some time in New Orleans when I was younger... It was when I first came over from Cairo. I was trying to make some money, I met his father, and started doing odd jobs with them."

"His whole family steals?"

"It's a legacy. The guild has been around for hundreds of years."

"Guild?"

"Thieves Guild. Remy's father is the patriarch. He paired us up to pull a number of jobs. One time, we were lifting gold and silver items from a mansion, and in the middle of it, the owner of the house woke up and went to the kitchen for a snack..."

-----------------------------------------------------

Rogue was enthralled. She had never once thought that Storm was capable of stealing anything, let alone going on planned heists.

"So I'm in de kitchen, right? And I sometimes get hungry while I'm working. So I go t'rough de fridge, looking for somet'ing to snack on. Stormy is in the study, and she sees de guy come down de stairs, but she can't get dere in time t' warn me. So instead, she sticks her head out de window and hits de power lines wit' some lightning, making de lights go out. And de guy, he has no idea what's going on. He's stumbling around in de kitchen now, and I'm jus' barely leaping outta de way before he reaches me. And now, he's feelin' around on de counter for de flashlight, which o' course, I took away, and all of a sudden..."

----------------------------------------------------

Kurt stared at Ororo, his mouth slightly agape. He was interested, as well as shocked.

"So I'm right outside of the kitchen, ready to back Remy up if necessary, and I hear this man scream 'Who the hell is making a sandwich?!' Turns out, Remy had gotten a little hungry and decided to help himself to whatever was in the refrigerator. It's a bad habit he had. There was a watch out for 'the bologna burglar' for awhile. After that, he lost the habit pretty quickly. Claimed that he didn't that name, since bologna went straight to his thighs. But back to the story. So he's in there, trying not to laugh, and the guy is angry because he thinks that his wife had left the bread out."

--------------------------------------------------

"And den, while he was trying t' get it all put away again, I lifted all of his silverware, from de drawer right in front of him. Stormy was still outside of de kitchen. So I come out, and turn around t' look around one last time, and I'm facing dis guy, nose to nose. Stormy tries t' make some noise outside so dat I can get away wit'out him hearing me, and she accidentally calls up a lightning bolt. Next t'ing I know, de guy is on de ground. Fainted. We got de hell out of dere. De next day, all de papers are running dis story about one of de rich guys seeing an angel and a demon ripping him off. Stormy must have been standing in front of de window, and he saw my eyes. You know, my 'beautiful' eyes?"

She looked down, blushing.

--------------------------------------------------

"And then, I get a phone call. And it's fom Remy's father. He calls us into his office, and when i get there, Remy is already there. As soon as I close the door, Jean-Luc turns to us and yells that we had the wrong house. Turned out we had robbed one of Jean-Luc's friends. Most of the stuff that we lifted was things that we had stolen from other places. He made us go back to the house, replace all of the items, and apologize to the man and his wife. It was the most embarrassing thing I have ever had to do."

Kurt raised an eyebrow. "I can imagine."

"Oh, come on, Kurt. You can't tell me that you've never done anything crazy before. You lived in a circus, for crying out loud."

Kurt's eyes lit up, and he grinned. "You want a story? I can tell you stories."

----------------------------------------------------

"Can you hear them?"

"No, I think they're over by the guys dorms."

Jubilee threw down the magazine and walked out to the balcony, where Kitty was standing on the railing, straining to hear whatever she could.

"Ok. Let's go."

Kitty hopped down. "What?"

"We're going to go visit Petey-boy."

"You're evil."

"Thank you."

They ran out of the room and sprinted towards the other side of the mansion.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

"Now I want t' hear somet'ing else."

"Ah dunno."

"Come on, Rogue. I know. What's your name?"

"It's Rogue."

"Non, your real name. I heard Logan call you Mary."

"Marie."

"So dat's your name?"

"No."

Remy sighed. "Den what is it?"

"I told ya. It's Rogue. That's mah name."

Remy was starting to get angry. "Why can't you tell me somet'ing as easy as your name? It's not a hard question. Just tell me!"

She exhaled deeply and closed her eyes, mumbling something under her breath. Neither of them noticed the two heads that popped up through the roof just on the other side of the chimney.

"What did you say?" Frustrated didn't even begin to describe Remy.

Rogue looked up at him again, her eyes full of something that he could not read. Then, she exploded. "Because Ah don't remember it, ok?! Ah don't remember what mah real name is. Marie is jus' what mah last set of foster parents called me, alright? The only name that ah've known th' whole time is Rogue. Rogue. That's mah name. Happy?"

Remy made a concerned face. "Non, dat's horrible."

"Yeah. Tell me about it."

"Y'know... Remy was adopted."

She looked up at him. "Was he, now?"

"Oui. Mon pere found me in a hospital when I was just a bebe."

"So ya never even knew your parents?"

"Non."

"Ah did. Ah ran away from home when ah was seven."

Jubilee popped her head back down into the room.

"She says she ran away from home when she was seven." She went to pop her head back up, not noticing that Kitty had let go of her arm, and she hit her head on the ceiling.

"Shit! Kitty!"

"Oops."

Bobby laughed from his bed, as Pete rolled his eyes.

"Serves her right."

"Da."

As much as Bobby wanted to hear all of the information being relayed, the methods being used to acquire it was, in his opinion, entirely unnecessary. The girls had come running into the room about a minute earlier and talked Pete into standing on his bed and letting them sit on his shoulders so that they could reach high enough to poke the tops of their heads out. Jubilee bent down again to continue the explanation.

"Her dad was abusive, called her a little Rogue. He mom died when she was six."

Bobby raised his eyebrows. He had suspected something similar to that, the way that she always skirted around that subject. Sure, he was a little bit jealous that he had never been able to get that information out of her, and now this complete stranger was getting her to open up, but he had decided that he was just going to let it go. He always hated it when she was angry, and he couldn't stand to have that anger turned on him. Earlier, as he was tending to the livestock, he had realized just how wrong his "if I can't have her, no one can" attitude was. It still made him angry, the thought of her sitting up there, telling her life story to Remy, but he just closed his eyes and leaned back, trying to not let it get to him. Jubilee popped her head down again.

"She was picked up by some woman named Raven Darkholme. Took her in for awhile, lived with her and her partner, Irene."

Bobby opened his eyes. Raven Darkholme. He'd heard that name somewhere before. He shrugged it off. Maybe Rogue had mentioned her in passing.

"Gambit wants her to tell him more about them, but she says she can't."

Bobby smiled. It was nice to hear her refusing to tell someone else about her life.

"She says that Raven and Irene only called her Rogue. When she was fifteen, she went to live with foster parents, after Irene died."

Bobby grabbed the pillow from behind him. He didn't know if he wanted to hear any more of this.

"And Ah was tossed around for two years before Ah got my powers and ran away again. That's when Ah met Logan and came here."

"Wow. Good story."

"Heh... thanks." She paused, thinking. " Y'know, Ah never told anyone that before."

"Guess Remy owes you anot'er story den, non?"

------------------------------------------------------------

"So Jimaine and I were in the dressing room, und we were waiting for our act to open, when Gerhard came in to take off his makeup before he switched characters. He did not know that I had replaced his cold cream with hemorrhoid cream."

Storm gasped. She had never heard Kurt tell stories like this before.

"So he put it on, and made a comment about how it smelled bad. I suggested that it was merely old, and he agreed. He spent an hour scrubbing his face, and he missed his second act. But the good news is that all of his wrinkles disappeared."

Storm laughed. She had underestimated Kurt. Sure, his religious side was very dominant, but she saw the glint in his eyes when he talked about his hijinks. His joking side was not only there, but she could see that it was very lively.

She was thinking of a good way to ask him about his apparent change, when the machine next to her started to beep. She looked down, and saw Jean's eyelids fluttering.

"Kurt, go get Hank and Scott."

He nodded and teleported away, as Storm stood and took her friend's hand.

"Jean, can you hear me?"

-----------------------------------

A/N: There we go... Thanks for all of the reviews of the last chapter, keep them coming :-)


	9. part 9

DISCLAIMER: they still aren't mine.

* * *

Jean floated back into consciousness, and saw the faces staring down at her. She looked around at Storm, Scott, and the Professor. A fourth face was also grinning down at her, but she couldn't quite place where she had seen the large furry man before. Trying to remember him, she got a headache. She closed her eyes and said the first thing that came to mind.

"I'm so sorry."

"Jean, all that matters is that you are alright." Her eyes popped open again. She knew that voice.

"Henry?"

"In the flesh. Or fur, as it were. It's been awhile, Jean... But it's nice to see you awake."

She felt something wet drip onto her hand, and turned her head slightly. Scott was crying.

"It's ok, Scott."

He looked at her. His vision was already impaired because of the glasses, and the tears filling his eyes didn't help either. Storm handed him a tissue, and he took of the glasses, wiping the tears from his closed eyes. He put the glasses back on and tried to smile. Jean looked at the Professor.

"I trashed the mansion."

"I know. But don't worry. I can afford the repairs."

In Bobby and Pete's room, Jubilee had just finished relaying a story about Remy's family. Bobby had moved from the bed, and was now standing next to Pete, waiting for the next part of the story. To his surprise, Kitty and Jubilee both jumped down from Pete's shoulders and darted towards the door.

"They're going back inside!" Kitty shouted as they ran through the door and back towards their room. They reached their separate beds seconds before Remy landed on the balcony with a light thump. Jubilee peered over her magazine, and Kitty opened one of her eyes, from where she was pretending to be asleep. They watched as he reached up and helped Rogue down from the roof. Rogue shot a look inside, and Jubilee jerked the magazine back up over her face, and Kitty covered her eyes with a stuffed dragon, trying to look nonchalant.

Rogue rolled her eyes. "We're being watched."

Remy grinned. "Den lets give dem a show, non?"

He grabbed her and put his gloved hands on her face, covering her lips and kissing his own thumbs. She was too surprised to do much more than just let him go with it. He turned his back to the room and removed his hands, his face inches away from hers.

"What are you playing at, Swamp Rat?"

"I guarantee der faces will be worth it."

She poked her head around and peered into the room. Sure enough, Jubilee had dropped the magazine and was staring with her mouth wide open. Kitty had a death grip on her dragon, undoubtedly waiting for Remy to keel over. Rogue moved so that they couldn't see her because of where Remy was standing, and grinned.

"You're right. Definitely worth it." She put her arms around him, and he mimicked the gesture, once again making it seem as if they were kissing passionately. In all reality, though, both of them were having trouble keeping themselves from laughing. Jubilee screeched inside of the room and Rogue dropped her hands, shooting them a look. Jubilee grabbed the magazine and pretended to read it, and Kitty covered her face again with the dragon. Rogue turned to Remy.

"It's been great, but Ah think that Ah need to go yell at them now."

He smiled. "Glad I could help."

He leapt over the balcony and landed neatly on the balcony of the next room over, hopping his way across to his room. Rogue bent over the railing until she couldn't see him anymore, and turned to go back into her room. Jubilee and Kitty were still pretending to be occupied, and Rogue walked in between their beds, landing on hers with a dramatic sigh. She grinned as she turned to Jubilee.

"Ah didn't know you could read upside-down."

Jubilee blushed and Kitty dropped the dragon. Kitty flopped over on her side and faced Rogue.

"Tell. Us. Everything."

Jean was sitting up in bed, telling what she could remember of her ordeal.

"I had to do it, Scott. Or else you all would have died. You know that, right?"

Scott nodded. Many people had told him the exact same thing, but it had never really helped to calm the sadness that was coursing through him.

"Something happened. When the water hit me, something forced it back out. It felt as if a cocoon had formed around my body. Then one day, I was pushed out. It was like I was in two places. I could still see my body underneath the water but I was also above it. I was a spectator in my own life, and I was doing things that I never would. I hurt people, but I couldn't do anything to stop myself."

Scott bowed his head. He knew exactly what that felt like.

Xavier spoke up. "The phoenix."

Jean nodded. "That's what it called itself. The phoenix force. It's still in me. It just isn't in control. It's powerful... too powerful. I don't know if I can contain it."

"We will help you."

"I know you will, Professor. It's just... they aren't my powers anymore. They're hers. Or it's. I don't know how to control them."

"We start from the beginning. You will control them."

"It's just too much, all at once."

"Would you like me to put up blocks, Jean?"

"Yes. I don't want to hurt anyone."

"Very well. Once you are stronger. I have a feeling that this Phoenix force will not show up for a little while, thanks to Rogue. Incidentally, I believe it may be a good idea for me to go see how this is affecting her. Scott, Henry. I trust that you will stay with Jean?"

"Of course."

"Yes, Professor."

He nodded to Storm and Nightcrawler, who stood up to follow him out. As she passed the bed, Jean grabbed Storm's hand.

"Thanks, Ororo."

Storm smiled. "I'm not sure what for, but you're quite welcome."

The professor had given Nightcrawler and Storm the task of answering what questions the students had, and he continued on to Rogue's room. He knocked on the door, and Jubilee answered it, obviously irritated that someone was there.

"Make it fast, She's finally telling— Oh, Professor. Come in."

"Sorry to interrupt. May I speak with Rogue for a moment, please?"

Rogue stood up from her bed. "Sure."

She walked out to the hallway and closed the door.

"What's up?"

"Are you alright? From what Jean tells us, the force which you absorbed is more powerful than anything you've come in contact with before."

Rogue smiled. "I'm fine Charles. Perhaps Jean was simply too weak to contain it?" He looked at her, narrowing his eyes. She smiled, and her eyes shone orange for a brief second before he took her down with his mind.

She woke up about an hour later, completely confused. The last thing she could remember was the feel of someone's hand against her bare skin. She hadn't been expecting that. Her confusion heightened when she looked around and realized that she was in the med lab.

"What...?"

A large, blue, gloved hand reached over and patted her arm reassuringly.

"Relax. It's all right. The professor should be down here shortly."

Hearing his voice, she looked up in shock, and spoke in a voice that definitely wasn't her own. "Henry? Henry McCoy? Is that you?"

"Yes."

"What are you doing here?"

"I've been here for some time now, Rogue. Remember, I'm the doctor?"

"I haven't seen you since high school!"

Suddenly, it hit him. Although he was looking down at Rogue, he was really talking to someone else. "My stars and garters...Jean?"

"Yes?"

"There's something you should see." He pulled the curtain back, exposing the real Jean lying in the bed next to her, sleeping. Rogue's eyes showed just how confused she was. "Who is that?"

"That is Jean."

"Then who am I?"

The doors whooshed open and the professor rolled in. He aproached the bed, and turned to Henry.

"How is she?"

"She seems to be quite well, except she isn't exactly herself."

"What do you mean?"

"Observe."

He turned back to her and asked her a series of simple questions. "What is the highest level of education you have recieved?"

"A doctorate."

"What are your powers, and when did you get them?"

"Telekinesis and Telepathy. I got them when I was ten and my best friend Annie died."

"Your name?"

"Jean. Dr. Jean Grey."

The professor rubbed his temples. He had feared that she would wake up someone different. There was no telling just how long the Phoenix force had been inside of her, pretending to be her, pushing Jean's consciousness into control. Xavier patted Rogue/Jean's hair and got Henry's attention. They moved just out of earshot.

"I'm going to have to enter her mind and locate Rogue. Once I find her psyche, I should be able to talk her through taking control."

"Alright."

"It's going to take some time. I'll need you to take over my classes for awhile, the procedure is very taxing on me."

"Okay."

Xavier pulled on a pair of gloves and wheeled himself over to the side of the bed, setting his hands on either side of her head and closing his eyes. Hank closed the curtain and pulled off his gown, stepping over to where Jean and Scott were getting ready to head up to their room.

"Jean, are you sure you're well enough to go back up? In my expert opinion—"

"Yes, Henry. In MY expert opinion, I'm not going to get any better down here than I am up there. At least I'll feel more comfortable. You don't realize just how hard these beds down here are until you have to lie in one."

"Indeed. If you need anything, let me know."

"I'll need you to explain this." Jean grabbed a fistful of blue fur and tugged gently. Hank smiled.

"I'd be happy to."

Jean popped a wheelie in her wheelchair and Scott grabbed the handles, steadying it. Jean looked back at him, smiling.

"Relax, Scott." The chair started to levitate, and it twisted so that Jean was face to face with Scott. She kissed him and punched him lightly on the shoulder.

"Telekinetic, remember?"

He grabbed the small duffel bag from the bed, and Henry handed him a small package of medicine that Jean had removed from the duffel bag when Scott wasn't looking. Jean, who had wheeled herself through the air, set the chair down again and turned her head slightly, shouting back at them.

"I saw that."

* * *

A/N You ever look at a story and realize that you left something out of it? I need to get a little more Storm in this thing. Going to attack myself with post-it notes about that one. Wow... it took me forever to get that chapter up. I'd like to blame it on the holidays and my laptop breaking, but there really aren't any excuses other than my own laziness. But you know what motivates me? Reviews. Hint. Hint. 


	10. part 10

DISCLAIMER: Don't own the X-Men. But I do own a pair of Dr. Scholl's gel shoe inserts. I'm gellin'.

* * *

Kurt and Storm had just finished answering the numerous questions that the children had, and they were headed to the kitchen. 

"So, Ororo, tell me. When did you become a thief?"

"Oh, wow. Let's see. Well, after my parents were killed by terrorists…"

"Your what were what!"

"I don't really like to talk about it. It was…the scariest thing in the world."

Kurt's face fell. He would have shared anything with her, but perhaps she didn't feel the same way. "It is alright. You don't have to tell me."

"Thank you. It's not that I don't…"

"It is alright."

"I was taken in by a man named Achmed El-Gibar. He gave me a place to stay, food to eat. In return, he taught me to steal. I was the best pickpocket in Cairo. But I left once I got my powers. When I was twelve."

"Why?"

"Whenever I was on the job, if I was the least bit nervous, it would thunder and lightning. It's hard to steal from a home when you've woken the owner up. I went back to my ancestral home, on the Serengeti Plain."

"Did you have family there?"

"The entire tribe was my family. My mother was a princess. I was born with the same features as those destined to be priestesses. By the time I rejoined with my tribe, I had developed the power enough to control it's instability. When the tribes found out about my ability, they began to worship me as a goddess."

"A goddess?"

Storm nodded. "I used my powers to ensure that they suffered neither drought nor famine. It was the least that I could do to repay them for taking me in."

"Ja, das stimmt. That...makes sense."

She nodded again. "I lived there until the Professor discovered me. I still go back from time to time. I'll take you with me sometime. It's really beautiful."

"I can imagine."

There was silence, and then Storm tried to move the conversation away from her own past.

"How about you? What was it like growing up in Bavaria?"

"Well, I too didn't really know my parents. My birth parents, that is. My adopted mother, Margali, found me in a river."

"A river?"

"Ja. I was floating downstream. Her band was camped by the shore, and she spotted me."

"That's incredible. Why...why would someone do that to a baby?"

Kurt looked at his hands. "Baby or not... when you look like this..."

"Oh, Kurt..." She gave him a hug. "There is nothing wrong with the way you look."

"It is a nice saying, but it is not true. Growing up like this, it is the first thing that you learn."

"Come with me. There's something that I should show you."

She led the way back down to the med lab, where they headed into a back room. She switched on the light, and Kurt's eyes grew wide as he took in the contents of the room. There were countless pieces of machinery covering what seemed like hundreds of stainless steel shelves. Ororo made her way to one of the far shelves and pulled out a large box.

"Come here."

He walked over and looked into the box. There were a large number of PDA-like devices. Storm picked one up and handed it to him.

"Press the red button twice and then the orange button."

"Why?"

She smiled at him. "Have faith, Kurt. Just do it."

He pressed the buttons and looked around. "It has done nothing."

"Look down."

He did, and to his surprise, his regular, feet were not there. Instead, a pair of "normal" feet, complete with five toes stood there. Similarly, his three-fingered hands were replaced with five-fingered hands. He teleported towards the nearest window and looked at his reflection. Staring back at him was not the blue face that he had known his entire life, but instead a pale, dark eyed man. He felt his face, the tattoos were still there. He could feel their raised bumps. Yet the face in the window was smooth.

"Was...!"

"We recovered them a few years ago, when we uncovered a hidden faction of Stark Industries that was targeting mutants."

"What is it?"

"An image inducer. A holographic projection."

"This is awesome!"

"Awesome?"

"...Is that not a word? I have heard the children use it."

Storm laughed. "No, no... It's a word, dude."

"Was?"

"Nothing. You don't need this, Kurt. But they are here if you choose to use them."

"Thank you for showing this to me."

"If it helps to make you feel more comfortable, fine. But I am telling you; you are beautiful. Anyone who does not see that is the one who is at fault, not you."

"You are too kind."

"It's not kindness."

Kurt smiled and turned back to the window.

On the other side of the window, the professor was fighting his way through the jumble that was Rogue's mind. He always felt bad delving so deep into people's minds, especially when the people in question were friends. But he felt even worse that he had allowed for the phoenix force to escape into the mind of another of his students. Luckily, there was little that it could do there other than simply hide, since Rogue had no telepathic or telekinetic abilities. Unfortunately, though, the phoenix force was very good at hiding. The last thing that the professor had wanted to do that day was sort through the thoughts of a teenager. He had already made his way through all of her memories of the institute, and put blocks on all of them, to prevent the phoenix force from hiding in them. He had tried to scan through them quickly, so that he didn't feel too much like he was trespassing. He leaned back into his wheelchair and rubbed his temples. He turned to the nearby door as Storm and Kurt walked out.

"Ororo?"

"Yes, Charles?"

"Were you aware that Jubilee referred to me as 'cueball'?"

"Well... she may have let it slip a few times..."

"I see."

"How's it going?"

"I have yet to enter into the part of her memories involving events before she came here. So far, though, I have found the moment where the force entered her..."

"When she knocked Jean out?"

The professor nodded. "I am also beginning to piece together what exactly it is. But I cannot be sure, until I speak again with Jean. Whatever part of it is inside of Rogue is weak compared to that which still dwells in Jean's body."

"Will they be alright?" Kurt peered behind the professor at the pale form on the bed.

Charles followed Kurt's gaze and sighed. "I hope so. It's getting late. You two should go make sure that all of the students are in their rooms. I'll be down here well into the night. And probably most of tomorrow as well."

"If you need anything..." Storm made her way to the door, as Charles nodded in appreciation of her offer.

About an hour later, Storm had just finished rounding up the last of the girls and getting them to stay in their rooms. She did one last sweep of the corridor before heading to Kitty, Jubilee, and Rogue's room. When she knocked on the door, it was opened almost instantaneously, and she found herself looking into the obviously distraught face of Jubilee.

"Ororo? Do you know anything?"

"No, not really."

Jubilee moved aside to let the older woman enter the room. Kitty was lying on her bed, sleeping. Gesturing for Storm to sit in the chair at their desk, Jubilee sat heavily on her own bed.

"Kitty fell asleep. She's so worried, she couldn't handle thinking about it."

"It's going to be ok. The Professor has assured me..."

"Yeah. It's gonna be ok. But it isn't ok right now. We don't know anything. Gambit can't even figure any information out."

Storm looked out at the balcony. She hadn't noticed Remy standing out there when she walked in.

"Has he been here all night?"

"Since Rogue left with the Professor. He left to get another pack of cigarettes from his room about half an hour ago, but other than that and some snooping downstairs, he's been pacing in and out of the room, chain-smoking."

"Maybe I should talk to him."

"Good luck. Unless you speak French, he's refusing to say anything."

Ororo sighed. "Alright." She stood up and put her hand on Jubilee's shoulder reassuringly. "If you need anything, I'll be in my room."

"Thanks."

Storm let herself out of the room and headed back to the adult wing. On the way, she ran into Bobby, who seemed to also be headed to the girls' room. She nodded to him sympathetically and continued on to her room. She paused outside of her door before turning and crossing the hallway, knocking on Kurt's door. It was answered by a handsome man, who smiled at her.

"Um..."

With a small beep, Kurt turned the image inducer off. "I have been playing with the controls. Come in."

She walked in and he closed the door behind her. "What is up?"

"I wanted to tell you something. My parents. Our home was bombed. My mother and I were in the basement; my father answered the door when the package was delivered. He opened it and the entire upper floors caved in. I was trapped in what used to be the basement. The rubble created a small cavern and I avoided being injured. My mother, however... She was struck in the head by a steel rod. I watched her as she suffered; I was trapped there with her body for almost a whole day. That's why I'm claustrophobic." She let it all out in one quick breath, worried that if she paused that her emotions would get the better of her.

Kurt tried to absorb the new revelation, but was unable to put into words exactly what he wanted to say.

"Wow."

Storm chuckled softly at his reaction. "Yes. Wow."

* * *

A/N: That might have taken awhile. Sorry. Reviews are good things -)  



	11. part 11

DISCLAIMER: I still do not own the X-Men.

* * *

The voices were getting louder and harsher. Out of breath, he had run as far as his small legs could take him. He crouched behind a bush and hoped that they didn't notice him there. Unfortunately though, his sobs gave him away and the small but angry mob quickly located him. 

"She's over here."

"Be careful, she's dangerous."

"No kidding."

He gasped as a pitchfork plunged through the bush next to him.

"I swear, after what she did to my little boy, I'll stick that skunk alive."

He let out a scream and scuttled farther into the woods. He heard them following, struggling a little bit as they tried to make their way through the undergrowth. Being small had its advantages. He dove through a small opening in the trees and out into a small clearing, where he ran into a tall woman with blonde hair.

"AH!"

"Hey there, honey. What are you running from?"

"You tryin' to get me too?"

"Of course not. I'm here to help you."

He looked behind him. The mob was getting closer. When he turned around, the woman was gone. In her place stood one of the townspeople. He quickly shielded himself, waiting for the man to hurt him. Instead, he yelled to the rest of the mob, pointing in an opposite direction from where they were.

"She went that way."

He looked at the mob and watched as they switched directions without questioning the man. When he faced the man again, the woman was standing there once more.

"Wh...what's going on?"

"I can help you."

"How?"

"I know all about how you're different. I'm different, too."

"Ah killed him."

"No, you didn't. He's going to be ok."

"You can't help me. You can't touch me."

"Watch." The woman changed right in front of his eyes. Instead of the blonde haired beauty that first stood there, a red-haired blue skinned scaly woman stood in front of him.

"Wha? How'd ya do that!"

"I told you. I'm just like you. I'm a mutant."

"A moo-tant?"

The woman chuckled. "What's your name?"

He thought a minute. Two names came to mind, neither of which sounded right in his head. "Ah don't know. Cody. Maybe. But those big guys keep on callin' me a little Rogue."

* * *

Leaning back again, Xavier removed his hands from either side of her head. The sweat was dripping down his forehead and into his eyes, and he wiped it away with a nearby towel. When he began the task of wading through Rogue's mind, he never thought that it would be so cluttered. And there were many parts of her life that she had failed to mention before. He never would have guessed that her powers had actually manifested when she was only five. Or that she had inadvertently put her best friend into a coma. And he surely wouldn't have guessed that the person who had rescued her from an angry mob would have been Mystique, although he had always assumed that she had somehow crossed paths with the Brotherhood at some point in her life. How else would Magneto have known about her powers? But she had gone willingly with Mystique. Of course, she didn't know exactly who Mystique was, but that was hardly her fault. He wiped the last of the sweat from his brow and shifted his weight. Concentrating again, he began to sift through her mind.

* * *

He tossed the dart haphazardly at the small board, completely missing. As the magnetized tip hit and stuck to the metal wall, someone laughed behind him. 

"Great aim, John."

He turned around and faced his new teammate.

"You think you can do better, Dom? Be my guest."

He bowed mockingly and Dominic Petros, codename Avalanche, demonstrated his particular ability. The floor began to shake and John stumbled, landing squarely on his rear end. He stood up, little more than his ego bruised, and started to walk away.

"You're such a loser."

Before Dom could send another vibration John's way, John whipped out his lighter.

"Don't even try it. I'll fry you so fast..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Sabretooth padded into the room.

"Meeting."

With that one word, he turned and made his way out of the room, leaving the two young men behind.

"His vocabulary is incredible," Dom deadpanned.

John looked over at Dom and laughed, clicking his lighter shut and pocketing it.

"Lets go before buckethead gets angry."

They walked down a series of metal corridors and finally came upon the conference room, where Magneto, Sabretooth, and Mystique were seated. John leaned against the wall, as Dom took an open seat.

"Nice of you two to join us." Magneto did not look happy. " I'm going to Europe for a week or so. Recruitment. When I return, there will be two new additions to the team. These individuals are of great importance to me and to the cause. Sabretooth will accompany me. In my absence, Mystique will be in charge. While we are gone, the two of you will be doing some housekeeping. I need the two storage rooms behind your quarters emptied out and furnished."

"No."

"Excuse me?"

"No. I'm not here to be a maid."

"Then you're not here at all. Pyro, you only have to clean out one of the rooms. We can use Avalanche's for the other. Avalanche, you have one day to g—"

"Ok, I'll do it. But I want you to know that I'm not happy about it."

"As long as it gets done."

Dom grumbled and crossed his arms in defiance.

* * *

He looked up at the building. It was bigger than any of the buildings back home. 

"Here we are. Welcome home."

The tall blonde led the way to the apartment building's front door, where the doorman nodded his head and opened the door elegantly.

"Evening, Raven."

"Stephen." She nodded and gestured to him. "This is my daughter, Rogue. She's moving in with us."

"Oh, nice to meet you little lady." Stephen held out his hand, and he shied away from him, hiding behind his "mother."

"Don't worry, Stephen. She's just a little scared."

"Oh, well we'll have to work on that, won't we? See you around, Rogue."

The pair continued into the building and he looked around. The walls in the lobby were fancier than any he had ever seen.

"Am Ah really gonna live here?"

They had reached the elevator, and Raven pushed the button. She looked down at him and smiled. "Of course you are, honey."

He saw his own reflection in the polished metal of the elevator and started to twirl the white parts of his hair around his finger.

"Are you rich?"

Raven laughed. "In some ways, yes."

They boarded the elevator and he watched intently as Raven pushed the button for the top floor, as well as a security code.

"How come ya said Ah was your daughter?"

"Because you are."

"Am Ah?"

"Yes, you are. I've adopted you."

"So that makes you mah momma?"

"Yes, I suppose it does."

"Do Ah have a poppa?"

"Not exactly."

"Ok."

The elevator made a pinging noise, and the doors opened. He found himself standing in a small foyer. Directly ahead of him was a very large living room. To both the left and right, hallways stretched out. He watched as Raven changed into her true form, and motioned for him to follow her. She led the way down one of the hallways, and opened a door.

"This is your room. If you want anything in it changed, let me know. You can explore it later on, but for now I'll give you the grand tour, ok?"

He dropped his bag on the floor and nodded.

"Ok. Across the hall here are our offices."

His eyes got wide. "Ah have a office?"

Raven laughed. "No, One is mine and one is Irene's."

"Who?"

"Irene. She'll be home soon."

"Ok."

Raven led the way down the hallway, towards the elevator. They passed the big living room, and he peeked in, eager to see exactly what was in there. The second hallway contained two doors, one on each side of the hallway. Raven opened one of them and showed him a big bedroom.

"This is my bedroom."

She then turned and opened the door on the other side. "This is the training room. Don't use any of the equipment unless I'm with you, ok?"

"Yeah. Where does Irene sleep?"

"With me."

"Oh... ok." He was slightly confused, but decided not to press it.

Raven turned again and walked back into the front entry. She turned and walked into the living room. It was even cooler looking from the inside than it was from the hallway. His eyes flew around the room, taking as much of it in as possible. There was a big screen TV, a comfortable looking leather couch, a huge stereo system, and a bunch of other electronics that he didn't recognize.

"This is the living room. Through here is the kitchen. And right outside is the pool."

"Pool!" He ran to the plate glass door and slid it open, running out onto the roof. Sure enough, a huge pool sat there, the water shining. "Cool!"

Then, he noticed just how high up he was. "Unnh..."

"Afraid of heights?"

"Yeah. Real afraid."

"Don't worry. You'll overcome that soon enough." Raven walked over to him and picked him up gently, carrying him back into the apartment and setting him down on the couch.

"You want a snack?"

"Yeah, Ah'm starvin'."

Raven switched on the television and showed him how to change the channels, then walked into the kitchen. Finally settling on cartoons, he could smell her cooking what seemed to be grilled cheese and tomato soup. Closing his eyes, he slowly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

The Professor pulled back again, once again wondering just how Rogue had been able to conceal her connection with the Brotherhood from the numerous psychics in the mansion. Sure, he and Jean were polite about it and never entered anyone's minds without their permission (unless it was absolutely necessary), but some of the children didn't have enough courtesy or control to do the same. He shrugged it off and realized just how hungry he was. Looking at his watch, he decided that there was just enough time for him to have a grilled cheese sandwich.

* * *

A/N: Sorry it took so long! I'll try to have the next chapter up by the end of the week to make up for it, ok? Reviews are lovely, by the way :)  



	12. part 12

A/N: I do not own the characters.

* * *

"Bombs away!" He ran full speed towards the pool, leaping into the air and forming a cannonball, making a big enough splash to soak both women sitting near the edge of the pool. The taller of the women leapt to her feet.

"ROGUE!"

He popped his head out of the water, with just his ears sticking out so that he could hear her, but so that the water hid the smile that always spread across his face when he was being yelled at.

"You know that we're working on something important here! You know that you are not supposed to do cannonballs while we're working! You know that..."

"Raven, let her be. She's just a child."

"Yeah, Momma. Ah'm just a child." He stopped treading water and climbed out of the pool, grabbing a towel and offering it to Mystique. Mystique grabbed it and swatted him with it.

"Go get dressed. We're going to take you with us today."

"Really? Ah get t' see where y'all work?"

Both women nodded, and he jumped happily and swatted the air. "Awesome!"

Beaming, he was about to hug his parents before realizing that he was only wearing a bikini. "Sorry... Ah'll just go get dressed then." He nodded again before running back to his room to put on some clothes.

Raven shook her head and turned to Irene. "Are you sure that she's ready?"

Irene nodded and picked up the book that she had been reading, her fingers flying over the pages as she picked up where she left off. "She's made progress, Raven. And besides, Magneto is getting impatient."

"Heaven forbid." Mystique hated playing second fiddle to him.

Irene smiled and set the book down again. "You really need to relax. Nothing bad is going to happen to her because of this."

"Are you sure?"

"Despite my inability to see what is happening in the present, you know that I am able to see into the future. I can assure you that nothing bad will happen ...to her."

"To her?"

"We're going to have to move."

"Why?"

"You've been spotted."

Mystique looked around nervously before morphing into her more human looking persona.

"How? We have a force field. They would have to be able to see through it."

"Or someone tampered with it. Either way, we have to leave."

"So we move. No big deal."

"By we, I mean just the two of us."

"What?"

"It is unsafe for her to stay with us now that we are known."

Just then, a yell came from inside of the apartment. "Hey! Y'all gotta come see this!"

Raven looked into the apartment, where Rogue was standing in front of the television. She headed towards the apartment before turning around again and helping Irene up.

He was glued to the television. He had turned it on in his room when he was getting dressed, but had darted out into the living room as soon as the news came on. He finished tying his shoes as the other two women came in.

"You're on TV."

Sure enough, a helicopter-mounted television camera was hovering just above their apartment, showing the two sitting by the pool, going over documents. A reporter began to narrate.

"The home of two of the most high-ranking members of the notorious Brotherhood of Mutants has been exposed. Mystique and Destiny, real names unknown, have evidently been residing in this Manhattan high-rise for at least ten years, during which time they adopted a child."

The camera switched slightly, and the inside of Rogue's bedroom, appeared. She was sitting at her desk, reading, the streak of white hair shining in the sunlight that flooded through another window.

"How'd they get that!" He shrieked. His room was off limits.

"That's what I'd like to know." Mystique picked up the telephone and dialed a number. She left the room, as the newscast continued. "So far, no representatives of the Brotherhood have been available to comment, and the police are also not commenting. We are, however, live on the scene, and will update you as the situation develops." With a quick glance to Irene, he ran out onto the patio, and looked up to the sky. Sure enough, there were a flurry of helicopters circling.

"Get back in here!" He turned and saw Raven standing at the door. Knowing better than to disobey, he ran back inside.

"Rogue, you're going to stay with Irene's sister for awhile in Mississippi."

"Why?"

"Because it isn't safe for you here. We're getting you a new identity. And we're going to have to do something about that hair."

His hand went to his hair, which was brushed back, the two stripes forming one long skunk-like stripe down the middle of her head. "But Ah like mah hair."

"So does the news, sweetie." Irene turned up the volume, and sure enough, the news cameras had captured her out on the patio moments before, and were now talking about her.

"Fine. What's mah new name?"

"Marie. We're still waiting for the rest of the information to come through. You'd bettter go pack. There should be a transport here for you in about half an hour."

He nodded and left the room.

* * *

Charles sat back again. He remembered that particular incident. It had been about four years before they picked Rogue and Wolverine up in Canada. He himself had always wondered the same as Mystique. He knew that the brotherhood had just as many advanced technology available to them as the X-Men did. Sure, he had been glad about their exposure, since they were obviously planning something at the time, but he had always been worried about the child, who seemed to disappear into thin air. After a few years had passed, though, he just presumed that the girl had joined up with the Brotherhood or had moved out, gone to school or something. When he first met with Rogue, he had noticed something familiar about her, but hadn't been able to place it. Even after the hair had gone back to "normal," he had been unable to remember where he'd seen it before, and too polite to go into her mind and find out for himself. 

"Professor." The voice came from behind him, and he turned to face Beast.

"There's something you should see."

He led the way back to his office, where a number of readings were printed out on paper and strewn across his desk.

"I've been cross-referencing these readings from tests that I've done on Rogue with readings from her initial physical. Interestingly, there are a few discrepancies. Granted, some of them can be attributed to the absorption of the Phoenix force, but some definitely cannot. For example, her muscles."

"What about them?"

"By no means was she weak before, but her muscles have developed in ways that should be physically impossible in such a short period of time."

"Perhaps it's a side effect of absorbing someone?"

"Carol... she absorbed Carol just before the incident."

"That would explain the muscles. Perhaps it will wear off soon."

"It's already been a few hours."

"Is she displaying any other of Carol's abilities?"

"No, I had no problem setting up the IV. If she had indeed absorbed the invulnerability, I would have had to use an adamantium needle. And even then it would have been hard."

The Professor's eyebrows creased and he tried to figure out what exactly was going on.

"Have you had any luck locating the Phoenix?"

He looked up at his furry friend. "Yes, and no. I've moved through a majority of her memories. Only a window of about five years remains."

"You seem somewhat apprehensive."

"I've uncovered some...interesting aspects of our young friend's life."

"Such as?"

"Her parents are Mystique and Destiny."

Beast was speechless. "But...how?"

"Do you remember awhile ago, when their location was broadcast on the news?"

"Of course."

"The child that they had..."

"Inconceivable!"

"I assure you, it's the truth."

"Are you two gossiping again?"

They both turned to the door, surprised to see Jean standing there.

"Jean! You are supposed to be on bedrest." Hank leapt up and put his hand on her arm, trying to gently lead her back to her room.

"No, Henry. Scott's doing enough resting for the both of us." She stepped into the office and sat down in Hank's now empty chair.

"So what's the topic du jour?"

"We were just discussing my findings from entering Rogue's mind to locate the Phoenix force."

Jean winced slightly, feeling incredibly guilty. "Maybe I could try?"

"Absolutely not." Charles didn't even have to think before answering.

"Why not? I'm sure that it would come right to me. Like a magnet. You got any food down here, Henry? I'm hungry."

Hank pointed to the lowest drawer on his desk, and she opened it, revealing a number of boxes of twinkies. She opened one and started to eat the pastry, while waiting for the Professor to reconsider.

"Jean, you're weak enough as it is."

"Charles," she countered, taking a bite of a twinkie. "You aren't looking so hot yourself. How long have you been trying?"

The professor bowed his head. "I'll give you half an hour. But first, there are things about her that you must know."

* * *

A/N: I don't want to do it, but I'll hold this story ransom as well. Reviews! Good, bad, I can take it! 


	13. part 13

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the X-Men.

* * *

He knocked lightly on the door, not exactly expecting anyone to answer for him. When Jubilee opened it to let him in, he stood, somewhat wary of the seemingly friendly gesture. Jubilee stared at him, her expression so mixed that it was an unreadable mess of frustration, worry, and sympathy. 

"Well, are you going to come in or are you going to stand there all night?"

Bobby blinked. He was expecting to be chewed out again, told to go away, that it wasn't any of his concern. Instead, he stepped into the room, moving out of the way so that Jubilee could close the door. As she walked back towards him to take her spot on her bed again, she whispered, "Just watch out for cranky Cajuns."

He chuckled a bit and looked over at Kitty, who was still asleep, an expression of worry taking over his face. "Is Kitty alright?"

Jubilee sighed. "Nobody's alright, Bobby. We're all freaked out. No one has any idea, all we know is that big Chuck says that she's going to pull through. And that's not even direct from the source." She pointed to the chair in the corner of the room. "You're allowed to sit, you know."

Another knock sounded on the door, and Jubilee started to stand, before pointing to Bobby. "Before you get comfy, would you see who that is?"

Not wanting to be at the wrong end of an angry Jubilee, he nodded and opened the door, letting Piotr enter. The large man turned his head immediately to Kitty, then back to Jubilee, raising an eyebrow.

"She's out. Cried herself to sleep a couple of hours ago. But you're welcome to wait for her to wake up, tall, shiny, and Russian."

Bobby took the seat that had been offered before and leaned back. He glanced out to the balcony and watched as Gambit paced some more. Piotr's eye drifted in that direction as well, mostly because he'd caught the smell of the smoke drifting in.

"Is Remy..."

Jubilee rolled her eyes. "I don't even know what he's doing." She looked at her watch and counted on her fingers. "But he'll be jumping off the balcony soon to go find out whatever he can. He's like clockwork."

Sure enough, Remy leaned on the railing long enough to extinguish his cigarette before vaulting over it. Not entirely used to Gambit's idiosyncrasies, Piotr ran towards the balcony, covering his body in metal as he went.

"Gambit!"

"Pete!" Bobby had leapt up and held out his arm, erecting a small barrier of ice between Piotr and the door to the balcony. Colossus tripped and stumbled a bit, before turning around. "He has just jumped two stories."

Jubilee stood up and sighed as she let off a few fireworks on the ice, melting it. "No, he probably landed in a tree or something. He's a monkey."

"Unghh... whazz going on?" Kitty rolled over a little bit and opened her eyes. Glancing once more to the balcony door, Piotr returned his body to it's normal size and texture and knelt next to Kitty's bed. "Nothing, Katya. Go back to sleep."

Bobby stood in place, watching, as Jubilee finished cleaning up the mess and headed back towards them.

"Ugh, they should just do it already and get it over with."

Bobby laughed, and Piotr blushed, making it quite clear that he'd heard what was said. A flying stuffed dragon aimed relatively well at Jubilee moments later confirmed that Kitty had heard it, too. Jubilee shrieked and grabbed onto Bobby's arm, jumping behind him. Seconds later, she gasped and jerked her hand back.

"Bobby... your arm..."

"What?" He was confused. Looking down, he noticed that his hand was a strange tint of blue, the way that it usually got when he was using his powers. Slowly, he rolled up his sleeve and gasped as his arm became exposed. Instead of flesh and bones, it seemed to be clear glass. He breathed heavily. "It's..."

Kitty was the first to finish the sentence. "Ice."

* * *

From his vantage point outside the med lab, Gambit couldn't see much of anything. He could hear soft murmuring, as if someone was relaying a story. And footsteps. He jumped as a hand on his shoulder alerted him to the fact that the footsteps were actually coming from behind him. 

"What're you doing down here?" The voice was just as threatening as the man to whom it belonged, and Gambit paled.

"Monsieur Logan... I..." He tried to think of what excuse to use, but was too exhausted, and settled for the truth. "I was worried. Dis kind of t'ing don' happen every day, hein?"

Logan sighed and crossed the hall, leaning against the opposite wall.

"They're not letting anyone any farther than this. Believe me, I've been camped out here almost the whole time. Won't even give me the time of day."

Remy raised an eyebrow. "Di'nt see you when I cane down de ot'er times..."

"We're in the war room. You can actually see the inside of the lab in there through the security system. Jean's having a look at her right now."

"Jean?" Remy's eyes flashed a somewhat brighter shade of red, as his anger started to rise. "De supposedly dead chick wit' de fire problem? Hasn't she done enough already?"

Logan closed his eyes. This would not be the best time to slice up one of Rogue's friends. You couldn't exactly leave a "while you were out..." memo. He managed to compose himself enough to choke out a gruff "Follow."

Remy staked after the older man and soon found himself in the war room, where Carol was watching the monitor of the med lab and reading a magazine. She looked up when the men entered, and nodded.

"No change yet that I can see. Jean is still all hunched over."

Wolverine sighed and sank into one of the seats. It looked like the long night was going to extend well into the morning. He looked back up at the screen, not wanting to take his eyes off of it in case something happened. Across the room, Remy lit another cigarette.

"You might want to be careful with that, bub."

"Don' care."

"Chuck ain't gonna like it."

"Don' care."

"Your life." Logan shrugged and turned back to the screen, then jumped up. Jean was no longer sitting in the seat next to the bed, and Hank was also off screen. Looking over at Remy, he ran out of the room and back towards the med lab, both Remy and Carol hot on his heels. When the trio reached the med lab, they ran in, the psychic barrier that Jean had constructed seemingly broken. What they saw shocked them. Bobby was standing there, his shirt off. Instead of a body, though, his entire midsection and most of both of his arms were crystal clear. The rest of his skin had a definite blue tint to it, and when he spoke, his breath could be seen clearly in the air. Jubilee was also there, torn between worrying about Bobby and worrying about Rogue. She glanced over at the exam table that held Rogue.

"Oh my God... is she dead!"

Bobby turned sharply and looked at the table as well, the ice spreading to cover his hands and starting to creep up his neck.

"Dead! What!"

Across the room, Wolverine heard them and unsheathed his claws, ready to kill someone if what the teens had suggested was true. Remy gripped onto the countertop next to him, and the area surrounding hand began to glow. Noticing the commotion, Beast closed the curtain around Rogue's bed and pulled on a pair of gloves to examine Bobby.

"I can assure you all, she is most definitely not dead. Logan, if you would please retract your claws. Remy, I'm rather fond of that table and even fonder of the technology upon it. Please do not blow it up. Jubilation, go stand with them while I examine Robert. Up on the table, Bobby."

Bobby looked around. "There is no table."

"Ah." Beast pressed a button on a nearby wall and an exam table rose out of the floor. He gestured towards it, and Bobby sat down, his movements all accompanied by the sound of ice breaking. He winced, not so much from pain as from the sound itself. It seemed to reform itself without him trying, and didn't hurt in the least. Beast looked over at the four assembled in the doorway, as Jean approached with a tray of medical instruments.

"Perhaps you should all leave. We will alert you of any updates in either of their conditions."

Three of them didn't move. Carol, on the other hand, nodded and tried to herd them out. Still, the three stood in their places, so she was left with no choice but to pick all three of them up (much to their annoyance) and carry them back to the War room. Once she had them back inside, and the door was locked, she dropped them and took her seat again.

"Danvers, I've got half a mind to slice you up right here right now."

She looked at him over her magazine. "You're welcome to try."

Remy was unusually silent, and stood up, leaning against the wall, his eyes transfixed on the monitor. Jubilee mumbled something and sat down in one of the chairs. Looking over at her, Logan realized that someone was missing. "Where's Kitty?"

Jubilee sighed. "When Bobby took off his shirt, she saw the ice and accidentally phased down through the floor. Petey's looking for her now."

Remy looked up. "Dat's gotta be a tough t'ing to wake up to, non?"

Jubilee looked over at him, smiling a little bit. "Yeah... how're you doing?"

He shrugged and pulled out a deck of playing cards. "Been better."

Sliding into an empty seat at the table, he started to play solitaire.

* * *

The house was entirely consumed by flames, and the townspeople were scared. They lived a fairly secluded life, never had problems with things like this before. Someone had gone out to the phone on the edge of town and called the fire department, but it would take a while for them to arrive. As they stood huddled in many groups around the house, a sudden wind emerged from the blazing building, tearing up the main street of the town and causing the fire to spread out and catch on a nearby barn. As the townspeople scrambled to rescue the animals inside, the wind slowed about a mile away, first becoming a blur and finally stopping, revealing itself as a young man carrying a young woman. The man set the woman down on a fallen tree and started pacing. She looked up at him. 

"Pietro... I... It was an accident." Her eyes were clear blue and showed just how distraught she was. She ran a hand through her dark brown hair and stood up, walking over to him. "Pietro! Answer me!"

Pietro looked up at her with the same eyes, the moonlight reflecting off of his white hair. "Wanda, it's always an accident. It was an accident in the last town, it was an accident the time before that." He spoke fast, and to the point. "You need to stop having accidents like some dog that needs to be housebroken!"

Wanda's expression hardened, and she walked up to him and shoved him against a tree. "Do not compare me to a dog."

Pietro sighed and rolled his eyes before disappearing in a blur of motion, ending up behind her. "Or you'll do what, Wanda?"

She stood, staring ahead of her, but a small, shining pink orb appeared in her hand. She waved her hand towards Pietro and it launched itself towards him, but he was gone. Instead, it hit a tree, causing the plant to wither and die, twisting in ways that it shouldn't.

"Just... don't do it."

He re-emerged at her side and clenched his jaw. "Fine. But we need to find a new place to live. And fast. Those hicks are going to figure out what happened sooner or later."

"All of my stuff was in that house."

"Yeah, and you hexed the oven. Torched the place. We'll get new stuff."

"All of the information we had about _him _was in there, too."

"I told you to give that up. We won't find him. He was probably just some no-good asshole anyways."

"Don't call my father that!"

"Well, he was. As I see it, he's worse than mom. He abandoned the abandoner."

"I still want to find him."

Pietro sighed and rubbed his temple. "Fine. I'll see if it's still there. But then, we're leaving."

"Thanks, Pietro."

"You're coming with me."

"Great." She rolled her eyes, but the end of the expression was lost as Pietro picked her up again and ran off towards the house, depositing her at the back of the crowd and continuing on into the house. Unfortunately, one of the townspeople noticed her sudden appearance.

"It's the witch!"

"Witch! What, me?" She backed up, but found herself pressed into a corner.

"Yeah, you. I know who you are! You're that same chick who blew up the old place in Rector! My cousin lives there, he told me all about it."

"How about that. Hick networking." Pietro appeared at the edge of the growing crowd, a small metal box in his hand. He waved it in the air, so that Wanda would see that he'd found it and zipped to her side.

"We ain't hicks, moron."

"Oh, **ain't** you?" He crossed his arms, obviously convinced that they could easily take on the entire town. Wanda wasn't so sure.

"Pietro... what are you doing? Lets just get out of here."

"You're gonna let these backwater buffoons talk to you like that and get away with it?"

She looked at the mob, which was getting angrier and fuller by the second. "Yeah, yeah, I am. And so are you. Lets go."

"Can't you just hex them?"

"I don't want to hurt anyone. Lets just get out of here!"

"Fine." He turned to the crowd. "We'll be leaving."

"No, I don't think you will." One of the men pulled a gun, and the two siblings looked at him, and, at the same time, in the exact same tone of voice, expressed their fear.

"Oh, shit."

A dark, cloaked figure behind the crowd turned, nodding to a large shadow of what seemed to be Bigfoot. Bigfoot nodded back, and the two jumped into the crowd, the smaller cloaked one extending what seemed to be a slimy whip from the inside of the cloak, effectively disarming the man. The man was stunned, and turned around slowly, as the cloaked man removed his outer layer and retracted his tongue.

"Mutants!" Unbeknownst to him, the man standing next to him had transformed into a thin, scaly, blue woman. She tapped him on the shoulder, and he turned again.

"Well put." One well placed punch and he was out. One of the townspeople ran from the barn, carrying a pitchfork. The ground beneath him shook, and he stumbled, dropping the weapon. As he scrambled for it, two figures stepped out of the shadows, and one extended his hand, easily pulling the pitchfork into his grasp. He threw the pitchfork into the woods, as another figure stepped out from behind them and sprinted off towards the burning buildings, raising his hands and making the flames subside.

Magneto and Avalanche approached the crowd from behind, and the group turned on them. Dominic raised his hand and again the ground shook, toppling those who were not expecting for it to happen, including Wanda and Pietro. Sabretooth stepped out of the shadows and approached them, offering his hand. Pietro scrambled to his feet and helped Wanda up.

"No, thanks."

The townspeople were petrified, and Wanda and Pietro were equally scared. As the streets slowly cleared, people running to their houses or for cover elsewhere, the Brotherhood (sans Mystique) regrouped, encircling the Maximoffs. Wanda clutched the small box to herself, worried that it would be taken. As Magneto stepped forward, all eyes were on him. He took off his helmet and looked at the twins.

"Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. You've gotten so big since I last saw you."

Pietro stood in front of his sister. "Who are you? What do you want from us?"

Smiling, Erik extended his hand. "Join us."

"Why should we?" Pietro seemed ready for another fight, but Wanda wasn't going to have any of it.

"We will."

"What? Wanda, we can't just…" His voice was racing, and it was hard to understand what he was saying. Wanda was used to it though.

"Yes we can. They saved our lives. Where else are we going to go? We can't stay here." She stood up and straightened herself out, tucking the box under her arm. "What other choice do we have, Pietro?"

He sighed, and Magneto smiled. With a nod, Pyro stepped away from the group and touched his ear. "Bring it in."

A whooshing noise accompanied by a strong gust of wind announced the arrival of Mystique in a helicopter. With one last glance, Wanda and Pietro followed their new teammates onto the craft.

* * *

A/N: Well... sorry about the wait. And dum dum dummm... there's the intro of Pietro and Wanda! I should really post my casting ideas to go along with this, but in my mind, they're played by the Gyllenhaals. So yeah. As for Avalanche, I don't really have any particular actor in mind. Same with Carol Danvers. But I'm working on that. 

Oh, I almost forgot. Please review :-)


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